Deeping Dream
by SilverLocke980
Summary: (LAST CHAPTER UP!) Dimitri, the young Duke of Maximov House, finds out that the hatred between Humans and Darkstalkers isn't a natural one, but is caused by deeper darkness...
1. Default Chapter

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Darkstalkers(which sucks), Capcom does. Don't sue me over  
  
anything in this fanfic, please.  
  
  
  
Hello everyone! This is my first fanfic, so be nice with the reviews. As you'll see soon enough,  
  
it's mostly about Dimitri... I don't follow the Darkstalkers storyline exactly, but I think I've done  
  
a better job than Capcom did. Basically, the characters are nowhere near as old as the  
  
Darkstalkers game states, since anybody that old would have severe personality changes that  
  
don't fit with the characters. Demitri is about 150 years old (young for a vampire). On with the  
  
show!- SilverLocke980  
  
note: Words in italics are thoughts.  
  
  
  
Tales of Eternity:  
  
Deeping Dream  
  
  
  
Chapter 1  
  
Ways of the World  
  
  
  
Dimitri looked outside his window. Night had fallen over Romania, and a bright moon  
  
had started to rise. Time to get up, he mused sourly. Since his father died when he was little,  
  
Dimitri had dreaded the coming of another night- another night of listening to advisors whose  
  
sole goal was to strip him of power, another night of attempted assassinations, another night of  
  
warnings of human encroachment and imminent war, of pain and suffering... sometimes it was  
  
too much to bear.  
  
Allowing himself a single sigh, he quickly adopted the mask he had made when he was  
  
little, told by one of his father's advisors that the best face was a stern one. The man had greatly  
  
impressed young Dimitri, with his stony face and seeming control of any situation. Dimitri had  
  
also learned the hard way that no matter what he felt, he was a symbol. The vampires of  
  
Romania, part of Makai, the Realm of Shadows, were in desperate times when Dimitri's father,  
  
Vladmir the III, was assassinated and young Dimitri took the throne. God, he thought, I was only  
  
50...  
  
His people needed a symbol of strength, and young Dimitri had to be that symbol, as the  
  
last surviving member of the royal family. No matter the pain in his mind or heart, no matter  
  
how weary he was, he must be strong.  
  
They had recovered slowly under Dimitri, and prophecies of doom regarding his ability  
  
had been left unfulfilled. It was generally agreed he was a good ruler, although rather harsh at  
  
times.  
  
But that was now, after 100 long years. In the early days, it had been nothing but  
  
assassination attempts that claimed both his mother's life and those of his closest advisors- his  
  
only friends. And after that, the duels. Fight after fight as nobles and young dukes attempted to  
  
strip Dimitri of his throne and rule themselves. He had learned the art of the spear and fist, and  
  
he had killed all who attacked him. But every time he felt another life bleed out by his hand, he  
  
lost a part of himself...  
  
Enough, he told himself. It was time to start the night. He heard his servants knock on  
  
the door, just as he finished dressing. Dimitri considered it a matter of pride to dress himself,  
  
without having servants do it, like most nobles. For tonight, he'd chosen his favorite undershirt,  
  
blue in color, which was covered by his overcoat and cape, which was accompanied by his boots  
  
and the single piece of jewelry he wore- the Anubis ring, symbol of House Maximov.  
  
"Lord Dimitri," a servant said from behind the door, " the ambassador of House Aensland  
  
is here, along with his entourage."   
  
"I will be arriving shortly. Direct them to the Great Hall," Dimitri told the servant.   
  
House Aensland was the most powerful house of Makai, ruled by the incredibly powerful  
  
incubus Berial. It was a house that Dimitri found both useful- and frightening. The incubi and  
  
succubi were strange creatures that required little physical food- for they fed on emotions,  
  
particularly strong ones like love and hate. They knew one's emotions just by looking at you-  
  
unless one built up a psychic wall. Dimitri had been practicing that just for this meeting.  
  
Dimitri walked down the hallway that led from his room to the Great Hall, the meeting  
  
place of Romanov Castle. He opened the great doors and stepped into the Great Hall. A long  
  
table was spread out, filled with various meats and foods. Most of it would not be eaten- but a  
  
show of opulence was expected at these meetings.  
  
The ambassador of Aensland, a old incubus named Marlin, was arguing with a succubus  
  
to his left. The beautiful succubus had odd green hair, and purple batwings that right now were  
  
angrily raised up. She was clearly mad about something.  
  
"Morrigan..." Dimitri thought. That brat here? She was infamous for her spoiled,  
  
arrogant attitude towards politics(and life in general), and was known to run off to the human  
  
kingdoms to find males to taunt and tease. She could care less about the people of Makai and  
  
their problems, she just wanted to be carefree. And her father, Berial, indulged her. There was no  
  
reason for her to be in this castle...  
  
Wondering about this strange occurrence, Dimitri spoke. " Ambassadors of House  
  
Aensland, I am honored at your presence here, in my humble castle." He bowed slightly to  
  
Marlin as he spoke.  
  
" And we are grateful to you for allowing us inside your castle, Duke Dimitri," Marlin  
  
replied, impressed with Dimitri's manners. In his mind, Marlin made a note to tell everyone  
  
back at Castle Stonehand that the young vampire lord had impeccable tastes in everything from  
  
his wine and his manners. He decided to do a emotional check on the man as Dimitri sat down-  
  
And met a wall. Marlin raised a eyebrow, then quickly checked himself. The vampire  
  
knew how to throw up a psychic wall! His opinion of the duke was going upward. Few  
  
creatures could maintain the calm and control necessary to throw up a shield. The vampire also  
  
had one hell of a poker face, Marlin decided. His face betrayed none of his thoughts.  
  
Meanwhile, Morrigan was sitting there sulking. She was forced here because enough of  
  
her father's advisors had ganged up on the issue and demanded she begin her training to be the  
  
next ruler of Makai. Berial begrudgingly agreed, and here she was, at the table of the Lord of  
  
Vampires.  
  
At least he's handsome, she thought to herself. Though I've heard he's a stony man, I  
  
think I can break him...  
  
She smiled at the fun she could have before the night was over. After all, they were  
  
staying for a while, weren't they?  
  
******************************************************************************  
  
SilverLocke980's Notes:  
  
Yes, I know I've changed a bit of the storyline, but most of it didn't make sense to me, so here  
  
you go. Send me reviews! This is going to go far beyond the little banquet here, so tell me what  
  
you like! Constructive criticism is always appreciated. Flames will be used to light my barbecue.   
  
I thank God for giving me life and happiness, my family for their love, and my friends for  
  
supporting me!  
  
See ya, FanFiction.net readers! 


	2. Fear and Desire

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Darkstalkers, Capcom does. Don't sue me please.  
  
  
  
It's me again. Here's Chapter 2 of my Darkstalkers story "Deeping Dream". Not a whole lot of  
  
people write Darkstalkers stories, and fewer still are good, so I decided to enter one in myself.   
  
Capcom should do a Darkstalkers RPG- it would be so cool. Enough wishing for what will never  
  
be-it's Showtime! -SilverLocke980  
  
NOTE: Sorry about the italics screw-up. My computer won't put italics in a text  
  
document (*sigh*) so I'll simply not put thoughts in. Damn wordpad problems!   
  
  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Fear and Desire  
  
Dimitri sipped his wine slowly, listening to the ambassador Marlin. The wine was laced with blood, taken during a raid on human villages.  
  
He almost smiled, thinking about the humans. Weak creatures. Only sheer numbers kept them alive on Makai. Vampires required them for blood to support themselves, but most Darkstalkers ignored them- or in the case of succubi and incubi, toyed with them.  
  
Ambassador Marlin was explaining a situation in the Inner Kingdoms. The Inner Kingdoms were where Berial ruled, and where the most powerful houses existed.  
  
"This man, Duke Jedah, is the head of a house along the coasts. He's gathered together a army of supporters who are starting to cause a rift in the Inner Kingdoms. He's not openly opposed Berial yet, which is why we can't make overt moves against him, but we do want some guarantees of help should Jedah attempt anything. We would like to ask you to come to our aid if Jedah decides to try civil war."  
  
Dimitri sipped his wine again, considering the ambassador's words. He hated to pit his kingdom in the middle of civil war in the Inner Kingdoms- as part of the Outer Kingdoms, they preferred to stay out of the more internal power struggles. However, if a big enough reward was offered for help...  
  
Dimitri asked, " How many support Jedah?"  
  
Marlin thought for a moment, then answered. " Currently, four kingdoms, all along the coastlines, support Jedah, along with his own. We believe we can beat them back, but more and more kingdoms are starting to look at an alliance with him. He's a very dangerous man, and I've heard he can charm almost anyone into doing what he wants. We would like to make a show of strength soon, with as many houses as we can joining us. Can we count on your loyalty?"  
  
Dimitri said, "And what is the return favor?"  
  
Marlin smiled. " Let's say that you will receive ample payment for any services rendered. On the honor of House Aensland."  
  
Dimitri nodded. House Aensland would never put anything on it's honor without meaning it. " You will receive a full regiment of my elite troops. I'll send them in a week."  
  
Marlin smiled. "Excellent. You have our thanks, Duke Dimitri of House Maximov."  
  
During this exchange, Morrigan had been sitting back, twiddling with her food. She was still trying to see what the vampire's emotions were- he had a shield up that she couldn't pierce. It both annoyed and intrigued her- what was he hiding? She would see more of this man tonight if she could.  
  
Dimitri stood up. " I will be leaving to take care of other business," he said, bowing slightly to Marlin. " You will be escorted to your rooms by my servants." Dimitri waved two servants over to the ambassador. " If you need anything, a guard will be posted outside your room."  
  
Dimitri nodded to them again and walked off. He had treasuries to note and armories to check, as well as orders to dispatch.  
  
Three hours later, the moon was almost down over Makai. The day would start soon. Dimitri stood on a balcony overlooking the grassy plains of Romania. Suddenly he heard a fluttering noise. He turned to look-  
  
And there was Morrigan, sitting on the edge of the balcony's rail, smiling at him. He immediately sent his shield up- but not before Morrigan caught his surprise and anger. Her smile widened.  
  
" What are you doing out here?" he inquired, trying to keep his voice calm.  
  
" What do you think I'm doing?" she said, standing up and walking to him. She placed her hands on his shoulders.   
  
" I am not one of your toys, Morrigan," Dimitri said, grabbing her hands and moving them off his shoulders. " And how did you leave without notice?"  
  
" I have ways," she said, moving out of his grasp. The batwings on her head raised up slightly. " I like it when men play tough- like I don't know what they want."  
  
Dimitri raised an eyebrow. " What I want is for you to leave me alone."  
  
" Do you really? Don't you crave my lips on yours? Don't you want my body pressed next to yours?" To illustrate her point, she moved closer to Dimitri, attempting to put him in an embrace. He stepped back, out of her arms reach. Her batwings raised up more. " I can be anything you want. Whatever you desire."  
  
" What I desire you to be is away from me."  
  
She pouted, her batwings turned down. " If you really mean it..."  
  
She stepped back, suddenly flipped over the railing and flapped her wings. "See you later, then," she said, blowing him a kiss and flying off.  
  
Dimitri shook his head. He felt very sorry for Makai when Morrigan took control. She was too driven by her wants to be a good ruler.  
  
He chuckled a few times. Of all the things Fate had to throw at him, a lust-crazed succubi princess was the last one he expected. His chuckles continued as he walked back to his room.  
  
Meanwhile, Morrigan converted her body into little bats that flew through the window of her room and landed inside, reforming her normal body in the process.  
  
She looked out the window and smiled. Dimitri... intrigued her. He was one of the only men to ever resist her temptations. It made him... interesting. Too bad they were leaving. She'd have to come here later and see if she could entice him.  
  
She fell asleep just as the sun rose over Makai. 


	3. A Nightmare's Dream

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Darkstalkers. Capcom does. Do not sue me over anything contained herein, please. The only character I own is Traveler. DOn't use him or the powers of copywright will jump up and bite you in your plagairistic ass.  
  
Okay, people! I have recieved ZERO REVIEWS so far. It's very easy to do, and I am now accepting anonymous ones. It was an accident as to why I would not accept them before (sorry people). If I receive no reviews within two weeks, I'm dumping this story and starting a new one, a Bloody Roar fanfic called " Hope for Tomorrow." If you don't like that idea, review me please! A single review will continue this fanfic! I've babbled on enough, here's the chapter below. P.S. Fixed the thoughts problem! Thoughts are in parentheses ().  
  
  
  
CHAPTER 3  
  
A Nightmare's Dream  
  
Dimitri watched the ambassador's company leave with a happy heart. Throughout the three days they had stayed, Morrigan had ceaselessly attempted to seduce,tease, and infuriate him. Although Dimitri thought she was a pain, he had to admit her attentions were rather... flattering. With an entire kingdom full of suitors, which included the handsomest members of all species, to pick from, Morrigan's obvious desire for Dimitri was a nice little ego boost. He smiled and chuckled about it. Still, he was glad for peace and quiet.  
  
He watched as an entire company of vampire knights, astride their warhorses, accompanied them out. This was the force he had promised Marlin, and several shipments of gold, his payment, was coming in and would arrive within a week. Dimitri turned and went inside to meet his advisors and counci.  
  
*************************************************************************************  
  
It was a week after that night that all hell broke loose- right on Romanov Castle.  
  
Dimitri had been talking to the men who brought in the gold. The incubus in charge was asking for directions to the treasury.  
  
" 'Ere's yer shipment. I'd shay you haf quite a lot of gold in there," the incubus said, his thick accent blurring the words.  
  
" Yes. If you would follow -" Dimitri began, cut off as the entire castle shook.  
  
" What da hell wash that?" the incubus yelled. He was soon knocked to his feet by another shock, which was followed closely by a loud pounding noise all over the castle.  
  
" What in the bloody hell is going on?" Dimitri yelled, grabbing a nearby table to keep from falling to his feet.  
  
" We are under attack! Everybody to your positions!" the watchtower guard screamed.  
  
The door of the castle was blown off it's hinges. And the strangest thing Dimitri had ever seen walked in.  
  
It was bright red, with a skull insignia on the right chest. It appeared to be made of metal, and was made like a bulky human. The arms had wicked claws jutting out all over them, with a circular pair on the ends. It had a dome top, and inside-  
  
Dimitri saw a human face, twisted in rage.  
  
(A human?) Dimitri thought. (What the hell is going on here? And what kind of armor is he wearing?)  
  
Dimitri had little time for thought, as the strangely armored human rushed at him. Jumping to the side, Dimitri grabbed a spear from the wall and stabbed him. His spear broke at the shaft. Jumping over it's next attack, Dimitri tried magic. He summoned his Chaos Flare and hurled the blazing fireball at the robot. It knocked it down, but it was barely singed and starting to get back up.  
  
Dimitri quickly looked around for another weapon-  
  
and looked up at a extremely heavy and extravagant chandelier. Dimitri grinned and threw his next fireball at the chandelier's chain. The human hadn't even gotten up before the weight of the chandelier impaled him and his machine. The force of impact caused the robot's oil to explode,blowing Dimitri backwards. Rubble piled on him as the castle continued shaking. Opening his eyes and grimacing from the pain, he looked up just as another robot was getting ready to cut his head off. He was pinned under a board that had fell from the blast, and he could just watch helplessly as the human-driven robot prepared to behead him-  
  
When the robot suddenly fell in two. A human was standing behind it, wielding a long sword that glowed strangely. Dimitri thought he heard a song, but it was faint- like the whisper of things long ago. Dimitri blacked out before he could say anything to the strange human. The human threw the rubble off Dimitri, picked him up, and vanished into the air.  
  
*************************************************************************************************  
  
TWO HOURS LATER....  
  
Dimitri woke up on a grassy hill. It was the middle of the night.  
  
( Why am I not dead?) he wondered. (That human- he couldn't possibly have lifted that rubble off me... I couldn't move it myself. Who was that guy? Why did he save me....)  
  
He got up, wincing at the pain in his ribs. (Must have broken a few ribs...)  
  
" Your ribs are broken. Sit for a while. You'll need your strength."  
  
Dimitri turned. The speaker was the human who had saved him from the robot. Now that he had some time, Dimitri could study him more closely. He had red hair, and wore a long cloak that was transparent... (Wait a minute,) Dimitri thought. (His cloak- it looks just like the night sky!) His face was hidden, but not by any mask. It seemed like it was just- not there. It was hid in darkness. His cloak covered his body, but Dimitri could see on his back the scabbard for that longsword. The song Dimitri had thought he heard was back... softly playing in Dimitri's mind.  
  
" Who.. are.. you?" Dimitri managed, gasping from pain.  
  
The figure seemed to smile. " I am the walker of worlds, the gatherer of tales... I am the Traveler. And your world is in grave danger."  
  
" What..?" Dimitri said, almost collasping. He focused his magic. The man appeared to be telling the truth...  
  
" A great evil not of this world has arrived. He is a demon from long ago. You must find him and destroy him, or he will wrap your world in darkness."  
  
Dimitri said " Why don't... you just.. kill him yourself?"  
  
Traveler sighed. " I cannot stay long here. Other places require my attention and intervention. This world's hope must rest on others who are willing to fight this evil."  
  
" And I'm one of them, I suppose."   
  
" Maybe. It is up to you. I saved you so you could make that choice. I cannot force you to fight." Traveler got up.  
  
" If you choose to fight, to avenge your people, seek out John Tailban. He lives in the werewolf kingdom a day east of here."  
  
Dimitri remembered the fight at the castle. Ignoring pain, he stood up and said, " My people!... What happened at the castle? Are they killing vampires in the villages..." he staggered a little, almost passing out.  
  
Traveler caught him. " The army the demon uses as his weapon is ignoring the villages of your province. They killed most of the vampires in the castle- I was able to divert some of them so your people could escape. Their main target is the capitals of each province. After that, they'll begin killing the Darkstalkers indiscriminately."  
  
Dimitri felt his rage boil. " Bastards!" He got back up and stood on shaky legs. " Not like we haven't suffered enough! Damn humans! Damn them..." he fell back again, and Traveler caught him once more.  
  
" No. It is not humans that are the problem. The demon is feeding off such blind hatred. It is what created his army in the first place. Humans, tired of being used as food or toys for Darkstalkers, gave their souls to him in return for power. That is his strength. Do not damn the humans, Dimitri- damn the demon."  
  
Dimitri got up again. " Then I will," he swore. " And I'll kill the son of a bitch too. How do I get to him?"  
  
Traveler spoke. " You will need a weapon strong enough to pierce his heart. John Tailban knows where such a weapon lies. I have already spoken to him. He will lead you to it. Once it is found, head to Castle Aensland. Warn Berial of the human army. From there..." he shrugged. " You will find a way."  
  
" Thanks", Dimitri said, taking a shaky step.  
  
" Oh, about your wounds..." Traveler waved his hand, and Dimitri felt a moment of disorientation. When it cleared, he felt no pain. " Take care, Dimitri."  
  
" I will. Thank you... Traveler."  
  
Traveler nodded his head and drew his cloak to him. He disappeared with the next gust of wind.  
  
Dimitri began walking east, heading into the forests surrounding the Kingdom of Wolves. 


	4. Ebony Serenade

Disclaimer: I do not own Darkstalkers, Capcom does. I do own Traveler, however.  
  
  
  
Hey readers! Got one review, titled "Not Bad", by someone called ?. So send more reviews, everyone! Anonymous reviews now accepted :). Sorry about the screw-up before- I didn't know I had no anonymous reviews turned on! Oh yeah- if anyone has any idea how to get HTML format out of Wordperfect, TELL ME PLEASE. I hate the text format, but it's the best I can do right now. Sorry :(. Here's the chapter: Parentheses indicates thought.  
  
Chapter 4: Ebony Serenade  
  
  
  
Dimitri arrived at the werewolf town of Howling Vale in the early morning. The light sun that was present was starting to cook him, so he quickly found an inn and slept through the day. Nobody recognized him as the Duke of Vampires, and he was more than happy to keep it that way.  
  
(If no one recognizes me), Dimitri thought, (I'll be all right. Don't want anybody with something against House Maximov to take it out on me.)  
  
Waking up in the evening, he spoke with the inn's owner about a man named John Tailban.  
  
" You're looking for John?" the old werewolf said, his fur a dark gray. " He's in the third house on the right, next to the smithy."  
  
Dimitri thanked him, and headed to John's house. He knocked on the door, which was soon opened by a catwoman with white fur and shocking blue hair.  
  
( A Felinos?) Dimitri wondered. (What's a Felinos doing here?)  
  
" I'm looking for John Tailban?" he said, wondering if the old guy at the inn had steered him wrong.  
  
" You a friend of John's?" she asked. " He's out, doing a bit of hunting. He'll be back soon. Why don't you sit down, wait a while."  
  
Dimitri entered the little wooden house. It was cheerfully decorated with assorted pictures and paintings, and on one wall hung what Dimitri guessed was a family picture album. One werewolf stood out- a tall werewolf holding a long spear in one hand, looking upwards. Dimitri got very odd sensations from it... like it was watching him. The hair on his neck rose up at the sight of the picture.  
  
Ignoring the unsettling picture, Dimitri turned his attention to the Felinos, who was sitting down in a chair and motioning for him to sit on a sofa nearby. As he sat down, she asked, "What brings you here?"  
  
Dimitri said, " I need to talk to John about something."  
  
She shrugged. " Alright. Where do you come from?"  
  
" Romania." he answered.  
  
" Oh, you're a vampire!" she practically squealed. " I've heard about them, but never seen one before. You don't look much different from humans."  
  
Dimitri frowned slightly. " Thanks for the reminder."  
  
She looked abashed, her little cat-ears drooping. " Sorry. Guess you don't like it being mentioned, huh."  
  
He shook his head. " No, we don't."  
  
Her ears perked up, and she looked at him. " But I don't see why not. Humans are a race of Makai, too. Just because their weaker than we are doesn't mean anything."  
  
Dimitri glowered at her. " It's not that. If that was it, I'd have no problem with Humans. But they hate us, and kill us when they can. Why the hell are you defending them, anyway? They'd kill you on sight, just like the rest of us."  
  
She sighed. " Damn it. This is just what we are trying to stop! If we could just work together..." She shook her head, blue hair twirling around.  
  
" We?"  
  
" Me and John. We've formed a little group that is working for peace between Humans and Darkstalkers. The Wolf Kingdom and the Felinos Kingdom have agreed to some of our measures, and we sent a envoy to Berial in House Aensland, but the outlook isn't very good."  
  
Dimitri mulled this over. Figured that the Werewolf and Felinos Kingdoms would agree to the measures. Of all the Darkstalkers, the two races were the closest to humans- werewolves even spent part of their time as a human. Although there wasn't a chance in hell of Berial accepting the terms. Berial despised humans, who he viewed as being nothing but overgrown ants; relying on numbers to take down their "betters", as Berial thought of Darkstalkers when compared to humans.  
  
As he was thinking, the door opened. A werewolf, clad in shorts and wearing a shoulder pack over his blue fur, walked in.  
  
Felicia ran over to greet him and gave him a big hug. " Hey John!" she squealed in delight.  
  
John hugged her back. As they embraced, Felicia whispered softly in his ear, " Some guy here. Vampire. He seems really creepy- almost totally emotionless."  
  
John let her go with a final squeeze to let her know he had heard her. He turned to Dimitri, who was sitting with his face blank of emotions, as he was accustomed to doing.  
  
" Are you Dimitri Maximov?" the werewolf asked.  
  
" Yes."  
  
" Have you met-" John stopped mid-sentence. He better see if this was really the guy Traveler had told him of. " Who sent you here?"  
  
" Traveler. He said to find you."  
  
John let out a sigh of relief. " Good. So you are Dimitri Maximov." He smiled. " I've been waiting for you ever since Traveler came by two nights ago."  
  
Felicia looked at John. " You mean that guy with the wierd cape? The one like the night sky?"  
  
John nodded. " Felicia met him too. He said that I had to help you. I don't know why, but when Traveler asks something of you..." he shrugged. " It was like I'd known him my whole life when we met, like he was a old friend asking a favor. Traveler is greater than anyone I've ever met before...." he shook his head. " Spiritually, I mean. So when he asks something, you do it. What help do you need?"  
  
Dimitri nodded. " He said something about a weapon..."  
  
John looked at the wall. He sighed.  
  
" The weapon is an old story in my family. My great-grandfather," he indicated the picture that had unsettled Dimitri on his arrival, " was a blacksmith. But he was a man who cared more for profit than anything else. To best other blacksmiths, he used foul methods to create his weapons, and they were always weapons of pain- weapons that fed on the very blood they spilled. His weapons became famous for their power and bloodlust, and many mercenaries and kings clamored for them. This went on for years."  
  
"But one day he set out after a mercenary camp he had sold to recently. They were going to attack a village, so he shouldn't have sold to them, but they offered gold and he was greedy. And in a perverse way, he thought it would be nice to see what his weapons would do. He came upon a village that had been completely ravaged by the mercenaries. A single survivor was left- a little wolf girl. My grandfather picked her up, looked in her eyes, and she died in his arms. The wound she had was nothing really- just a small gash on her arm- but the blood in her body was sucked out. My grandfather's weapons had slaughtered all those people..." John shook his shaggy head. " My grandfather was so shocked and horrified at what he had created that he went back to his forge. He worked day and night for weeks, pouring his very life into his new creation. It was a black spear, created of ebony. He put a part of himself into it, gave his life to give it strength- and before he died, he named it the Ebonrule. It was incredibly hard and sharp, but light as a feather to the wielder."  
  
Dimitri said, " What makes it special? It sounds just like every other enchanted weapon I've seen."  
  
John chuckled. " Well, this one has a twist. It cannot be held by an evil man, and in the hands of the good, although having the qualities I mentioned, it is still nothing special. But when held by a man who was once evil, and has turned to good, it blazes with a blue flame- the flame of redemption. There is no spell, no armor, no scale strong enough to withstand the Ebonrule when it burns. The flame coats the wielder, making them impervious to magic. Not even a demon can withstand the Ebonrule's fire."  
  
Dimitri raised an eyebrow. " If it is so powerful, why have I never heard of it?"  
  
John pointed at the picture. " My grandfather sealed it in that picture. No one can reach the Ebonrule if they have not once been evil, and then purged themselves- just like my grandfather."  
  
Dimitri nodded. " Fine. But I hardly fit the evil turned good description..."  
  
" Do you really believe yourself a man of Good, Dimitri?" a rasping voice suddenly called.  
  
The Darkstalkers jumped up and turned around. Nobody was in the room...  
  
" Why are you looking for me there, Dimitri? I'm inside you... in your heart, where the evil grows with every pulse. I am part of you, boy."  
  
The voice made John's hackles rise. It sounded like sandpaper being rubbed together. And even though it was faint, John heard a child crying. Crying in pain and torment- but it was in the background, and John refocused his attention on the voice.  
  
" What do you mean?" Dimitri yelled out. " Who are you?"  
  
" Isn't it obvious?" the voice answered, and the three Darkstalkers heard mocking laughter, as if from a thousand voices in the background. " I'm the reason slaughter continues, I'm the voice that drives the mad, the reason everything in your world is fed by death and pain and hatred..." The laughter began again. " I'm you, every evil thought you've ever had. I'm the darkness that abides in everyone's heart, given flesh and purpose, given birth in flame and nightmare. I'm the destroyer of souls, the lord of the Deeping Dream..."  
  
" I am Pyron." 


	5. Sins of the Past

Reviews! YAY! I've currently been reviewed by two people, Tiger5913 and ?. To both of you: Thanks. I'm continuing this faq since I've recieved SIX reviews! So, I'm putting down Chapter 5 right here. And one thing, to anyone who wants to tell me- how do I know how many hits my story has received? Anyone know? Please help the newbie :).  
  
So, with that question out of the way, we strive valiantly forth into my story! The chapter's a little long, but you'll enjoy it.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
Sins of the Past  
  
Dimitri whipped his head back and forth, futiley trying to see where the speaker was hiding.  
  
" Show yourself!" He demanded angrily, though his mask of calm stayed in place.  
  
" Jon, what's happening?" Felicia said, nervously backing towards a wall. Her claws were unsheathed, and her ears were laid flat against her skull.  
  
" I think Pyron just made one hell of a grand entrance," he muttered, his teeth bared. A snarl escaped his lips.  
  
" Indeed I did, wolf," Pyron said, his voice smooth as silk- with an edge of iron. " But it is not you I am interested in."  
  
Felicia, meanwhile, had backed up to a wall, and was looking about. Suddenly a skull-like face appeared on the wall and a bony hand grabbed her arm. She screamed and tore at it with her other hand, and managed to get away. The skull-face laughed at her, as a new arm grew from the wall. Other faces appeared on the wall, some laughing, some crying, all hideous in the extreme. Their arms soon followed. As the faces covered the wall, a burning ring appeared in one, and out stepped a thing of Hell.  
  
It stood at over 6 foot, and the burning antlers upon its head scraped the ceiling. Fire covered its being, with tortured faces of pain sometimes appearing amidst the brimstone, to scream and vanish. The sound of a crying child intensified in the room as the creature flexed a hand. A single burning sword replaced it's claw, and shrunk back into a hand a second later.  
  
(So this is Pyron) Dimitri thought. His heart trembled, and the mask that was his face trembled as well. (What unholy place does he come from?)  
  
" No, werewolves don't interest me at all. Rather, I'm interested in vampires, particularly this one." Pyron turned his white, pupilless eyes to Dimitri, and out of Dimitri's mind a strange thought coalesced, before his body went numb under their gaze:  
  
(He has the eyes of the damned.)  
  
" You who defeated my kind so long ago, in the War of Sundering," Pyron said. " You who sacrificed so much to win. The race I hate above all others. The race I have personally damned."  
  
Dimitri's paralysis broke. " So your the bastard who attacked my home," he snarled, rage twisting his features.  
  
" Exactly. But, in truth, all I did was give the humans a hand. They were planning an attack anyway."  
  
" But we would have rebuffed it, if you hadn't given them those weapons!" Dimitri roared.  
  
" Maybe. Probably not. What attacked your castle wasn't even a third of my forces. The army heading for Castle Aensland is considerably larger." The apparition seemed to grin. " The humans are trying to get revenge for thousands of years of pain and torment. None of you can stop them."  
  
Felicia gasped. " Castle Aensland?... You're going to attack the royal family?!?"  
  
Pyron nodded at her. " Exactly."  
  
John, behind Pyron, began nodding towards the photo of his grandfather that hung on the wall. Dimitri watched him. John was acting out a scene: reaching in something...  
  
Taking a leap of faith, Dimitri turned and thrust his hand into the painting. The surface rippled, like water, and Dimitri suddenly felt himself falling... into memories...  
  
*Blood on the ground*  
  
Dimitri looked around. He saw a human village under attack, the walls on fire and the people fleeing in panic. Dimly he recognised it as the town he had raided 100 years ago, when he had first taken over, a town where his father's killer supposedly had stayed.  
  
*Blood in the air*  
  
(Why am I being shown this?)  
  
*Blood on your hands*  
  
Dimitri tried to look for the voice, but all he could see was a group of vampires, riding into the village astride their warhorses, cutting a swath through the meager humans trying to defend the village. And in the front, stabbing through them heartlessly, was a vampire Dimitri recognized.  
  
Himself.  
  
Dimitri watched, as the younger version of himself stabbed forth with a vengeance. Dimitri had forgotten all this... and other memories leapt at him. How good he had felt when another human died by his hand, how excited he had been, how a monstrous joy seized his heart.  
  
" No..." he whispered. He'd forgotten this night. He'd forced himself to forget how good the killing had felt, how nice it was to let the monster in him out to slaughter, to revel in the gore...  
  
*Innocence stolen*  
  
Dimitri watched helplessly as he saw himself go after a young woman holding her daughter. A human soldier charged his younger self. The vampire lashed out. The man fell dead, heart pierced.  
  
" Dadddddyyyyy!" the girl cried, struggling out of her mother's arms and running towards her fallen father. He saw his own face smile, the smile of a monster, as the eyes gauged the distance to the girl. His arm raised.  
  
" No...." Dimitri cried in his mind. He knew what came next. Oh God, to reverse what happened then...  
  
*Can you do that?*  
  
" What?" Dimitri said, struggling to shut his eyes from the scene in his mind.  
  
*Can you kill this part of you? The part that enjoyed killing, the part that stabbed that girl to death, the part which spreads blackness on your entire life?*  
  
Dimitri felt himself tugged in two ways. One towards the monster in front of him, and another back- to a place of light...  
  
And he knew where he wanted to be. He pushed away from the monster, from the darkness... And entered a strange place, a peaceful one. The vision in his mind's eye disappeared, replaced by soothing darkness.  
  
*Remember this, Dimitri. A man who has always been good is great indeed. But a man who decides to fight for good, when evil has tainted his soul, is the greatest man of all. Redemption is the fire that burns all sins, the rain that cleanses.*   
  
And Dimitri was suddenly back in the room with Pyron, his hand still in the painting. Only a few seconds had passed. John was rushing Pyron to distract him, and Felicia was jumping from the other side. Pyron was still staring at Dimitri, wondering what he was doing. Dimitri pushed his arm forward.  
  
And on the other side his hand struck the shaft of a spear. 


	6. Song of Redemption

Hey Everyone! Here's Chapter 6- I'm glad you have all been enjoying it! A shout to Tiger5913 for help with the storyhits/reviews and ?/Long Shot for reviewing! Thanks, everyone!  
  
Chapter 6  
  
Song of Redemption  
  
Dimitri grabbed the shaft and pulled. The picture seemed to distort and lengthen, and as Dimitri's hand came out, it pulled the most beautiful spear Dimitri had ever seen out of it.  
  
The shaft was a good six feet, carved of pure ebony, and was jet black. Blue veins shot throughout, illuminating the beautiful carvings of roses. Near the head, a guard jutted out, made to look like bat wings facing the sharp end of the spear. The head was a foot long, and looked razor sharp.   
  
(Don't have time to be awed) Dimitri muttered to himself, spinning around with the spear in his hand. John had Pyron by the arm and was biting ferociously, while Felicia was busy dealing with some skeletons- they had broken free of the wall and attacked her. Pyron's free hand was turning into a flaming sword, and Dimitri figured that if he managed to cut John with it, a quick death would follow. Dimitri charged Pyron, remembering the first rule of spear fighting:  
  
*Always remember that you have the advantage of range. You can kill them before they can touch you- so long as you are fast with your spear.*  
  
The same advisor who had taught him to appear emotionless had taught him to fight. Dimitri heeded him now and jabbed at Pyron's face from the end of it's long reach, too far back for Pyron to strike him.  
  
Pyron saw the spear coming, but he didn't think it would hurt him. After all, only the most powerful enchanted weapons could even scratch him...  
  
Right before the spear pierced Pyron's face, it suddenly shifted. Blue fire suddenly erupted in rivers out of the blue lines on the spear, forming burning rivers of flame. The fire seemed to flow over the spear, creating the illusion of running water. When it struck Pyron's face, it seemed to move forward, like a wave assaulting the shore, to strike him.  
  
Pyron jerked back so hard from the blow that Jon was thrown off his arm and into a corner. He let out a mild "Oof!" as he hit the wall.  
  
Pyron was screaming in the most intense agony he had ever known. His face felt as though it had been the ground chosen for atomic testing in Nevada. He backed off, thrashing and screaming. The skeletons collapsed around Felicia, as the dark sorceries animating them were dismantled by the force of Dimitri's strike and Pyron's agony. One that had been clutching her leg fell to pieces about her. She drew back, shivering in fear at the screaming, bleeding figure before her. Pyron's face around the wound was shattered. She could see a inner fire, darker than his flaming skin, that must have been the soul of his being. The horn above was shattered, almost like if a wave had smashed against it.   
  
Pyron cast the first spell that came to mind, a teleportation spell. He disappeared in a blast of hellfire.  
  
As the three left in the room started to get up, the spear's blazing flame retracted. 


	7. With These Hands

Okay everyone.... I know the last chapter wasn't very long, but I was having a mild case of writer's block. Thankfully, what little ingenuity I possess has come back full force! Here is chapter 7 of my story. Please review- I'm planning on becoming a writer one day (it's the only way I can make money without really "working"). Enjoy!  
  
A SPECIAL SHOUT-OUT TO MY REVIEWERS! THANKS FOR REVIEWING!  
  
()-signifies thought.  
  
  
  
Chapter 7  
  
With These Hands  
  
Dimitri gazed up into the night sky. So many stars there- what had they seen? What kind of monstrosities, what glories, did those luminaires bear witness too?  
  
(My own,) Dimitri thought grimly. He remembered that night, now two days past, when Pyron had emerged from the burning ring inside John's house. Dimitri replayed everything in his mind- always coming back to his memories of the human village.  
  
( What am I?) he thought, and putting a hand over his eyes, he felt bitter tears roll down his cheeks.  
  
He relived it again- the scent, the want to kill, the joy he had felt every time a life was snuffed out- it was so different from the duels when he was young. Then, he had been killing his own kind- but humans could be slaughtered safely. One could strike at them without fear of reprisals- and oh God, how good it had felt...  
  
( STOP!) Dimitri almost screamed out. He couldn't deny the truth. He had repressed those memories, forgotten them, until the Ebonrule bore their hideous visage into the open, sore wounds which had never healed- just scabbed over with amnesia.  
  
( Face facts, Dimitri), he thought, calming down. And the fact was, he enjoyed killing. Every bit of the slaughter brought on a joy that was greater than any other carnal pleasure- a nightmare wonderland.  
  
He glanced at the Ebonrule. Past it, he saw Felicia and John readying the camp- dawn was arriving. His gaze, however, rested on the spear.  
  
What had it meant? It said that redemption was the rain that cleanses; so why now did he feel no different? Why was he still attracted to killing?  
  
John was walking towards him. Dimitri quickly changed his features to his poker face. John crouched beside him, on a small rock jutting out of the hill they were on. They were silent for a while, and then John spoke.  
  
" What's it like?" he said.  
  
Dimitri asked, " What do you mean?"  
  
John looked upwards, at the same stars Dimitri had been studying minutes before. " To be a Duke. To be on top."  
  
Dimitri thought for a while, then spoke. " I don't know what you mean."  
  
John shook his head. " I've lived my whole life alone," he said. " I grew up in a human village, never knowing I was a werewolf- and when I found out, I hated myself. I eventually got over it, moved to Howling Vale and found my family, learned my truth- I had been left for dead in a human raid. A raider picked me up, mistaking me for a human child. And about a year after I came to Howling Vale, I met Felicia." He glanced over at her, a look of fondness in his eyes that was unmistakably love. " I was always poor till I came to Howling Vale. And I always dreamed about royal life. So I was kinda wondering how close to the mark my dreams were."  
  
Dimitri said, " It's tougher than you think. I know that probably sounds ridiculous to someone who has spent their life wondering where the next meal or bed was coming from, but royalty has its own problems... and temptations..."  
  
Dimitri went silent, remembering the village and the slaughter.  
  
" Hey, Dimitri."  
  
Dimitri turned to his werewolf companion.  
  
" I don't know what you did," John began slowly, as if contemplating each word before he spoke, " but whatever it was, it was bad. My grandfather said that the brigher Ebonrule's fire burns, the more evil in the wielder- and that fire on Ebonrule was like a star."  
  
Dimitri turned away. So his sin was known, not in details but in strength. His eyes moistened with tears of shame. His mask trembled with barely concealed pain.  
  
" But my grandfather also said that to make Ebonrule burn at all, one must honestly want to rid themselves of evil- to be redeemed. Dimitri, whatever you did, you can get past it. Everyone has secrets- there are a lot of things I've done I'm not proud of. I used to like stealing- it was a thrill. The skill required was what I was using as a proof of my manhood- that I was man enough to steal anything." He chuckled. " But I've changed. I wouldn't steal from the richest, most corrupt person on the planet now. The temptation is still there, and will be until I die. But the temptation isn't the act. If you have the honor and will to ignore temptation, then Ebonrule will always burn for you."  
  
He patted Dimitri on the back. " Come on, the sun's almost up. Let's hit the sack- I'm shit beat."  
  
Dimitri glanced at his companion, and a rare smile lit up his face. He looked at the Ebonrule for a while, then picked it up. A glimmer of blue shone faintly on the staff- a echo of azure flames and soothing water. 


	8. Beginning Anew

Okay, all my Morrigan-loving fans (you know who you are)- SHE'S BACK!!! It's time for some Morritri in my story! You'll understand when you read it. Have fun, and reviews are welcome as always. God bless America and the World!  
  
()-Indicates thought.  
  
CHAPTER 8  
  
Beginning Anew  
  
Dimitri and his companions, John and Felicia, traveled for two days. Their goal- Aensland Castle. Dimitri figured that they would arrive in two more days, three at the most. The trip was uneventful- until the evening of the third day.  
  
Dimitri awoke in his tent as the sun's last rays dropped below the horizon. Time for another night of trekking through the woods. They had left the Werewolf Dukedom behind last night, and were now on Aensland territory. After cleaning up camp, they began hiking again.  
  
Dimitri was in front, being placed as leader almost by default. John and Felicia followed behind.  
  
After walking for a hour or so, Felicia stopped suddenly, sniffing the air.  
  
" What is it, Felicia?" John asked.  
  
" I smell smoke and... some kind of burning meat. Can't tell what it is," she said, little nose twitching back and forth.  
  
John lifted his nose to the air, took a few sniffs, and then snorted. " I can't tell either. Smells bad, though."  
  
Dimitri looked about. In the forests around him, he saw a small hill. "Let's climb that hill," he said. " We'll see if we spot anything."  
  
They climbed the hill and almost immediately spotted a huge fire, some distance away. It was coming from a large tower, and their were many smaller fires nearby. Although the others didn't pick it up, John's sensitive ears heard crying and screaming.  
  
" What the hell is that?" John asked, wondering if it was Pyron's work.  
  
" A funeral pyre," Felicia said, almost whispering it.  
  
" What?" Dimitri asked, turning his head.  
  
" My species," she began, her normally exuberant expression gone and a look of sorrow on her face, " has a tradition. Whenever a large number of people die, we burn the bodies on a great funeral pyre, shaped like a tower. It's to help them reach Heaven." She cleared her throat. " We're nowhere near the Felinos territories. And only one other Darkstalker race builds funeral towers- the incubi."  
  
John's head snapped up as what she said sunk in. " Oh shit. You mean- has Pyron's army already been through here?!?"  
  
She nodded her head. " The only way they would build such a large one is if an entire village died. I think we're going," she looked down, and her ears drooped as well, " to be too late to warn them."  
  
Dimitri looked at the pyre. If it really was a funeral tower- even from this distance, it was enormous. (God,) he thought, (how many did Pyron kill?)  
  
" I'm going to check it out," Dimitri said. " We have to find out if this is Pyron's work..."  
  
" How are you going to get there?" John asked, not taking his eyes off the pyre.  
  
" I can fly for short distances. It'll be stretching it, but I think I can make it to the pyre."  
  
Dimitri took his cloak off, and willed his body to change. His bones lightened as marrow was drawn from them, his body shrunk as some of it's fat and muscle was reorganized and burned up, and blood in his body pulsed-  
  
Pain wracked Dimitri's form. He'd completely forgotten about blood. The events of the last few days had numbed his hunger, but now it practically shrieked. All vampires needed blood at least once a month- God, he hadn't fed in so long...  
  
(Calm yourself, Dimitri), he thought. (You can feed later- John and Felicia are close enough to human to suffice.)  
  
Despite his best efforts, a small, strangled noise escaped his lips. Felicia heard it and went to his side.  
  
" You okay?" she asked, concern in her voice.  
  
He forced a grin. " Changing is never pleasant to undergo. I'm all right. Just step back a bit so I don't knock you down, okay?"  
  
She backed off, looking at him worriedly.  
  
A insane thought pushed to the front of his head. ( Hey, someone looking at me with something other than calculation or lust). He pushed it aside.  
  
His wings had just finished growing out of his back. He looked less like a vampire now and more like a enormous half-man, half-bat creature. He unfurled his wings and took off from the hill.  
  
Gliding in, he saw now that it was indeed incubi and succubi gathered about the pyre- and many were clumped around the pyre, crying. However, he noticed that some were setting up a watch- and that those gathered looked more like nobles and soldiers than peasants.  
  
Dimitri, looking about camp, suddenly spotted a tattered flag, hung from a tattered standard made of a spear haft and a sword blade that jutted out across, forming a T-shape for the banner. And Dimitri realized that these were the incubi of Aensland castle, fleeing it.  
  
(We were too late,) he thought grimly.  
  
He was then promptly spotted by several guards, who grabbed up bows and ordered him to land. Dimitri landed, and then began changing back. The guards, keeping their bows on him, hollered out, "Bring Morrigan! A vampire is here!"  
  
(Morrigan?) Dimitri thought. (Why is she in charge? Unless-)  
  
The unthinkable had happened. The lord of Aensland, the mighty incubus Berial, was dead.  
  
A few tense minutes later, when Dimitri was sure that the guards would use him as a pincushion, Morrigan arrived.  
  
Her face was haggard and covered in bruises and cuts. She was very obviously in pain- and she wore a black ring of mourning on the index finger of her right hand. Her clothing was cut and a tattered hole- possibly made by an arrow or spear- marred the leather of one of her wings.  
  
She gazed wearily at him, and then recognition dawned. Her eyes and mouth opened in shock, and the wings of her head, seemingly shocked as well, spread right out. If she had not looked so bad and the mood had not been so grim, Dimitri would have laughed at the sight.  
  
" Dimitri?" 


	9. Sorrowful Lament

Well, folks, fanfiction.net has made me goggle with wonder lately. You would not believe the number of Harry Potter fanfics- over 9000! Holy Shit! Anyway, I wrote a piece there called "Harry's Madness", which you should read if you like HP. If you don't, that's good too- it's a free country. Here's chapter 9, ladies and gentlemen! Oh yeah- legal stuff...  
  
I do not own Darkstalkers, and barring miracles, never will. If I did, I would be creating a RPG based around them, be very rich, and probably Japanese.  
  
()-Indicates thoughts  
  
A SPECIAL SHOUT-OUT TO MY REVIEWERS, AND PARTICULARLY TIGER5913 AND LONG SHOT! VIVA LA FF.NET!  
  
Chapter 9  
  
Sorrowful Lament  
  
Morrigan stared at Dimitri as if he had just sprouted from the ground like some unnatural weed. The soldiers, unsure of whether to kill Dimitri or not, held their ground- and their weapons on Dimitri.  
  
" Put yer weapons down!" she shouted at them. " 'E's a frien'!"  
  
Dimitri noticed that Morrigan's voice had taken on a wierd accent- and that it was shaky around the edges. Glancing around, he got a good idea why- most of the soldiers were wounded, and many of the survivors- if that was what this was, as Dimitri suspected- were simply gazing about, dazed beyond their wits.  
  
" Come alon', Dimitri," Morrigan said, looking around. " Le's go to my tent."  
  
They walked to a private tent that looked as ragged as the men who attended it. They let Morrigan and Dimitri pass, and inside, Morrigan sat down on a small cushion- the only seat in the room. Dimitri kept standing.  
  
" What happened here?" Dimitri said softly, his mind still reeling with the reality of what he had just seen.  
  
" We didn' know anytin'," she began, that odd accent even more pronounced now. " We hadn't 'eard anytin' about 'n army, comin' from yer woods."  
  
" Two days ago, they attacked. They killed my father..." at this tears came to her eyes and she broke down. " I can' lead! I'm not ready for this! Father dies and I'm left alone..."  
  
She sobbed, her body shaking. Her larger wings wrapped about her, and she hugged her knees to her chest.  
  
" E'en Marlin's dead! They ain' no one left..."  
  
Dimitri, feeling a wave of unexpected sympathy and pity for Morrigan, walked forward and hugged her. He held her there, until the storm of her sorrow passed. She straitened up a bit and continued on.  
  
" We took 'at we could, and left. The main army got smashed't. 'Is is what's left. We' been fleeing towards the Wolf Kingdoms. We've 'eard that Jedah and his supporters ar' gonna make a stand on the coast. The army attacking us 'is 'eading straight for him."  
  
She then began laughing- a hysterical, high-pitched laugh. Dimitri thought that Morrigan was very close to a mental breakdown.  
  
( Do you blame her?) a voice asked in the back of his head.  
  
( No,) he answered it.  
  
" 'An to top the whole damn thing off," she said, crying and laughing at the same time, " I'v got this accent back! I thought I got rid of it as a little girl. But 'ere it is again."  
  
She continued her hysterical laughs until they degraded back into sobs. Dimitri continued to hold her.  
  
" I can' rule," she sobbed.  
  
" Morrigan," Dimitri spoke, whispering in her ear, while rocking her, " listen to me. I've went through the same thing- not on so grand a scale, but the Vampire Kingdom was very badly hurt when I took control. I was so young," his eyes dropped. " I considered running off, abandoning everything. And you know what? I couldn't. My people needed me. And now your people need you." Morrigan started to speak, but Dimitri shushed her gently. " Morrigan- you are all they have left. You won't be perfect, and no one ever is. But they won't expect that from you. They expect the best of you. And that's all any being of Makai can ask of you. You must gather them together again- try to regain a semblance of order- and then you must lead them. Take them to the Wolf Kingdom. They are untouched as of yet. And in the woods, many people can hide for a long time. All of you will be safe there." He kept rocking her back and forth. Her sobs had stopped, and only a occasional sniffle came out.  
  
" Dimitri?" she asked, her accent noticeably weakened.  
  
" Yes?" he asked softly.  
  
" Thank you," she said. And in her heart, Morrigan was grateful for this man- grateful he had showed up.  
  
" It's nothing," he said. He managed to feign a grin that, under the circumstances, looked amazingly sincere. " But I was wondering if you had any human blood to drink. I'm a bit low, you see."  
  
She managed a weak smile as well. " Come on. We have a few captives left, if you want them."  
  
They got up and walked out of the tent, and in her heart, Morrigan felt a twinge of some emotion she had never felt before.  
  
(What is this?) she wondered. ( What do I feel?)  
  
Though she did not know it, she was feeling the first faint beats of love. 


	10. Memories of Blood

Hello once more, my fellow readers! This is the tenth chapter of Deeping Dream ( I expect to have 20) and I must say this has been fun. One of the best things I've ever done was sign on to ffnet. Also- about Morrigan's odd accent...  
  
If any of you read Morrigan's Bio in the Darkstalkers 3 videogame manual (or simply find it over the net) it will state that she was born in Scotland. I've tried to recreate a Scottish accent as best as I could. It only appears when she's unsettled- like the last chapter. Think of it as a nervous tick.  
  
Here's Chapter 10 (wow, I'm into double-digits now). Legalities:  
  
I do not own Darkstalkers or any characters thereof. Capcom does (assuming they haven't sold the rights).  
  
()- Indicates thought  
  
  
  
Chapter 10  
  
Memories of Blood  
  
Dimitri and Morrigan made their way through the makeshift camp. Dimitri could see how haggard the remaining soldiers looked- and their age. (Not a young man among them,) Dimitri thought. (Their all too young to be fighting or too old.) Some of the soldiers looked to be still in the throes of their youthful hormones (several bad cases of acne pointed this out) and others looked old enough to be Dimitri's grandfather. All in all, not what one would consider prime fighting material.  
  
They reached a small tent, guarded by two young incubi. Bowing to Morrigan, they parted the tent flaps. Inside lay a young human, unconscious, most likely due to the large and obvious blows his face had received. One eye was blackened shut, and his lips were puffy.  
  
" He's the last one," Morrigan said, her accent gone now. Dimitri noted this with some relief; it meant she was feeling better. Another, more cynical part rejoiced because the accent had been getting on his nerves. " The others didn't say anything useful, or they killed themselves before we had a chance. This guy will die of blood loss soon enough anyway, so drink your fill."  
  
Reaching down to right the man, Dimitri remembered his companions. " Morrigan, some friends of mine have been traveling with me. I've much to tell you, and they can tell you their parts as well- I left them about half a mile west of here. Can you send someone to bring them here?"  
  
She nodded. " Sure. I'll send someone now."  
  
She stepped out. When she was gone, Dimitri grabbed the human up and pushed his head back. The unconscious man merely moaned in his semi-coma.  
  
( Relief,) Dimitri thought, as his fangs punctured into the man's neck.  
  
Blood flowed into him from the gaping wound in the man's neck. It washed down his throat, and a special set of blood vessels lining his esophagus delivered this blood into his body, taking it where it was needed. Dimitri did not know this- no vampire knew why blood was needed so much- but he did know that it made him feel so much stronger- he could actually feel the new blood, rushing about his body.  
  
He also knew he would receive the man's emotions when the blood got into his brain. Blood had different textures- one couldn't really call them tastes- depending on a person's makeup and emotions. Good, honorable men have a strong earthy texture, like the smell of the earth before a good rain; fouler men have a sooty texture, like getting the ashes of a fire on one's tongue. This man was close to the ash taste. Dimitri felt in enter his head-  
  
And then a burst of memories poured into him. If it hadn't been busy feeding, his mouth would have pealed into a cry of shock. This had never happened before...  
  
He felt like he was plunging down from a great distance, through eternal blackness. And then, from the dark, came snapshots of time- almost like photographs (which Dimitri had never seen- he thought of them as paintings) of time. But not this man's time- before then, far before then. Even without knowing anything else, Dimitri knew that for a fact- why he couldn't understand, but he knew all the same.  
  
A group of humans, standing before a fire. Blackness.  
  
Another group, robed in black, standing before a lake inside some sort of building- it looked like a shrine. Blackness.  
  
A third group, robed in black as well, atop a mountain peak. Wind was clearly blowing fiercely about them- their robes seemed on the verge of being ripped off. Blackness.  
  
A fourth black-robed group, standing before a great and solemn tree, a mighty wolf standing amidst it's branches. Blackness.  
  
Two groups of men now, one in black, the other in armor, arguing with each other. One man stood out- he was young, but his face was already lined in worry. He seemed to be trying to persuade the black robes of something, but they were shaking their heads. Blackness.  
  
A great stone castle. Inside, a group of humans were kneeling before the black robes. They were clearly some sort of honor guard. One of the black robes removed his hood-  
  
and Dimitri saw his own face. Blackness.  
  
Dimitri came too a minute later, his fangs still latched on the human's throat. He had nearly fallen, and was now kneeling on two legs that didn't feel like they would hold out much longer. He dropped the human and steadied himself with his hand as he rose up.  
  
" What just happened?" he whispered to the empty room. " What was that?" 


	11. No Rest for the Wounded

Hello again! Once more, we find ourselves on the road of my insanity. Here is Deeping Dream, Chapter 11. As always, send me reviews- they make me feel loved!  
  
Legalities: I do not own Darkstalkers or any characters thereof.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
" SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 11  
  
No Rest for the Wounded  
  
Morrigan walked back into the tent where Dimitri sat dazed, staring at the floor as he attempted to find out what the hell had just happened to him.  
  
" We found your friends. They should be arriving-" she looked at him, took in the look on his face, and said, " Are you okay?"  
  
Dimitri shook his head. " I'm fine," he lied. No way he would tell anyone what had just happened until he knew what it was himself.  
  
[ With the way my luck's going,] a cynical side of his mind spoke, [ I'm going insane.]  
  
The rest of him found that hilarious, and he barely restrained laughing out loud. Morrigan looked at him like he'd went mad- when she came in, he looked like he'd just been struck dumb, and now he was grinning and chuckling.  
  
He shook his head. " It's nothing. Just an after-effect of feeding."  
  
Morrigan looked at him oddly, but only said, " If you say so. Your friends will be here in a minute. Let's go back to my tent."  
  
As they headed back, Dimitri caught sight of Felicia and Jon.  
  
" Guys!" he yelled to them. They looked in his direction, and went over to him. Both were greatly saddened.  
  
" Dimitri," Felicia said, looking at the still-burning pyre tower, " it isn't... who I think it is, right? Please tell me... that it isn't Pyron."  
  
Dimitri sighed. " It's him. The bastard got here first."  
  
Jon cursed loudly, and then added, " What happened?"  
  
Morrigan told her story again, this time with far less sobbing (and without the accent). when she finished, she said, " Who's this Pyron? Is he behind this? He must be a demon to do this..."   
  
Jon snorted. " Lady, you don't know the half of it."  
  
Speaking as swiftly as possible without leaving anything out, Dimitri, Felicia, and Jon told their tale, beginning with Dimitri's tale of being attacked at his castle, to Jon's tale of the Ebonrule, and Felicia adding her own bit about spotting the funeral pyre. At the end, Morrigan shook her head.  
  
" I'll be damned," she spoke, and was about to add more when...  
  
The ground shook. A roaring scream was heard, and the screams of men dying.  
  
The four rushed to the source of the scream and saw something hellish attacking a group of soldiers. The monstrosity was hideous in the extreme. Large, alligator-like heads protuded from long necks near it's middle- Dimitri counted five of them. Each had long, razor-sharp teeth, and no eyes. Several had crimson flecks on them, where they had been snapping at the soldiers. One had a large spear sticking out the side.  
  
Right below these were hands- huge hands, the size of a giant's, that dragged the creature along the ground. These hands were crushing the life out of several soldiers who got too close to the beast. There were about ten in number- it was hard to be more accurate, as the hands constantly shifted and twisted about. A long tail supported it's back.  
  
On the top, where the heads of normal beasts lay, was a human female, whose body was almost entirely covered in the dark blue scales of the beast she was part of. She had no lower torso, but simply merged with the beast. She was laughing as she tore into the soldiers.  
  
Dimitri rushed forward and threw the Ebonrule, which had lit up into azure flame when Dimitri spotted the creature. It sliced through a hand that held a soldier, severing it at the wrist. The soldier dropped down, hitting hard enough to elicit a banging noise when his armor hit the ground. He was carried off by others soon.  
  
Several soldiers were flying about the creature's female torso, attempting to stab it- but every time, the human face spewed forth a strange, blood-like substance that burned like acid. Morrigan spread her wings and flapped to join them, mentally summoning a fireball. She flung it, only to have her efforts rewarded with a blast of acid. She swerved to dodge it and was struck by a grasping hand. It flung her to the ground, where she lay dazed.  
  
Jon had leaped straight towards the creature- he was never one to plan his attacks- and had bitten one of the heads. He now held on with all his might, biting all the while. It screamed in pain as Jon attempted to tear it off. Another head swerved from the soldier it was going to bite and headed straight for Jon, meaning to rip the annoyance from it's brother.  
  
Felicia, seeing Jon in imminent danger, launched herself into the head, rolled into a ball. The blow knocked it off course, and instead of hitting Jon, it bit through the neck of the other head. The head fell with a thunk, and Jon leaped off.  
  
Dimitri had not been very surprised when Ebonrule returned to his hand instantly- one part of him had been very sure of it- and he threw it again. The years of training with a spear paid off once more, as this time it stabbed another hand and split it apart, the separated ends burning with blue fire. He turned in time to see one of the heads launching at him, mouth gaping. He grabbed it's spread jaws and used his enormous strength to keep it from closing.  
  
Morrigan, her head finally clearing, gazed at Dimitri's straining at the head. She distracted it with a fireball to the face- it screamed and stopped it's attempt to devour the vampire. He ended it's pain with the returned Ebonrule, the spear easily cleaving it's neck.  
  
Jon, again attempting the gung-ho approach to combat, leaped into the air and swept his claws along the beast's torso. Long red lines appeared there, and the female face of the monster spat poison at him. He rolled out of the way, and struck into it's flesh with both hands, using the scales as an impromptu ladder.  
  
[ That bitch!] he thought, never realizing how absurd his thoughts were. [ She spit on me!]  
  
Felicia, seeing Jon heading towards what could possibly be a very painful death, launched herself up the creature, dodging the hand and mouths while clambering up the creature. One of the remaining heads launched after her, a spear dangling from it's side.  
  
Morrigan launched something herself- a fireball that caught the spear in the head's side. The spear's wooden end exploded in flame, and the tip, propelled by the blast, fired deeper into the head, where it's connections with the central brain were lodged. The tip cut these vital connections and shot out the other side of it's head. The head jerked and then dropped, limp and powerless, to the ground.  
  
Dimitri, meanwhile, found himself the receiver of the unwanted attention of the remaining two heads. He swung his spear in wide, burning arcs, hoping that someone would help him- Ebonrule was mighty, but it wouldn't keep him from getting torn in half if just one of these heads got through. He kept up his swinging, the burning spear lighting up the night with it's sapphire glow. One head tried to get in, and it's upper jaw was sliced in half for it's trouble. The other rushed in while Dimitri tried to stab the other, and although Dimitri's reflexes kept him from being bit, he was hit by the ends of the jaws, and was driven backward several feet, barely keeping hold of Ebonrule. The heads rushed after him, jaws wide open.  
  
Jon had reached the top, and the female body, distracted by several guards, did not notice him until he had latched his jaws quite firmly on her neck. She tried to scream and merely gurgled. One of the hands reached up to tear him away, and it almost made it when Felicia, with a cat-like hiss, slashed it with her claws. Jon gave one fierce tug straight up, and the female head separated from the torso. With that act, the entire creature shuddered and fell limp. The two heads fell barely a foot from Dimitri, who had beleived himself to be one dead vampire. Morrigan moved away from the body, trying to avoid being crushed by it's weight. As she went over to help Dimitri up, she felt more than saw what was happening behind her.  
  
When she turned, she saw a ghostly image of a woman, floating above the dead creature. She was screaming as several horned beasts grabbed her and dragged her away- a gust of wind blew the vision apart.  
  
A guard nearby asked, " What in the name of all that is holy was that?"  
  
- That's Chapter 11! As you can see, I've gotten noticeably better at fight scenes! You'd be amazed what writing constantly will do to your writing ability! Until Chapter 12- see ya later! 


	12. Fragments of Sin

Hey everybody. This is Chapter 12 of Deeping Dream. Got a little over-exuberant on the last chapter, and I am now resuming my normal pattern ( no more Percocets for me!). Here it is, ladies and gentleman (along with assorted unsavories).  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 12  
  
Fragments of Sin  
  
  
  
Pyron sat, nursing his wounds. His face had healed somewhat, but his horn remained broken. He sat upon his throne, made of darkest obsidian, in the middle of a darkened room. No shaft of moonlight pierced it's darkness. Only a single entrance marred the perfect smoothness of the walls. A small crack of torchlight filtered in under it.  
  
Suddenly, the sounds of screaming and torment echoed in the room. A human woman's form, strangely transparent and being dragged by horned monsters, was pulled up from the floor. Pyron looked up at the figure.  
  
" Ah- my Fragment of greed. So he has killed you."  
  
The figure writhing on the floor tried to say something. It was blurred, and only one word was clear:  
  
" Mercy!"  
  
If Pyron had had eyebrows, he would have raised one of them. As it was, he merely shook his head and chuckled. " Mercy? My dear girl, I have none. You knew that when you agreed to become a Fragment. And you knew what would happen if you failed."  
  
Raising his hand, Pyron opened the dark gateway to the deeping dream inside him- and the woman's screaming, tormented soul was dragged into the gateway, flanked by the slobbering, laughing imps.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Dimitri, Morrigan, Jon, Felicia, and assorted guards were gathered in Morrigan's tent. They were all discussing the attack of the night before.  
  
" What was that? It wasn't a natural creature," Morrigan noted. " I know every single species of creature that lives in this part of Makai, and I've never seen anything like it."  
  
Jon snorted. " I could've told you that. Doesn't take a genius to figure out that whatever that thing was, it wasn't natural. No natural creature has a soul floating over it after it dies."  
  
Felicia, who had been quiet thus far and thinking with her head down, raised her head. " I'm not for sure- but my people have a legend about something like this. It says that some people can give their souls to demons and become monsters. They turn into monsters representing their own cardinal sin- those consumed by hatred become dark, shadowy creatures, those whose sin is gluttony become obscenely large and digusting beeasts, and so on. I think that they were called Fragments. Maybe she was a woman who gave her soul to Pyron and turned into a Fragment. That's why her soul was dragged off by those horned things."  
  
" You think that's what we saw? Her soul?" Morrigan said.  
  
" Probably," Felicia said.  
  
Dimitri, who had donned his mask once more, smiled in his head. [Wow. Her people's traditions are turning out to be pretty useful.]  
  
" Bet she isn't going to have fun, wherever she's going," Jon noted with a smile.  
  
" Probably not," Morrigan said, waving her hand, " but let's get off that subject. What we need to do now is get the hell out of these plains. Once in the Werewolf Kingdom and it's forests, we should be able to hide ourselves from Pyron's forces. That's what we'll do, but what are you guys going to do?"  
  
" We're going after Pyron's army," Dimitri said, his tone grim. " We have to find him, and then I'm going to shove Ebonrule into his heart."  
  
Morrigan looked at him for a moment, then shook her head. " How do you expect to get close enough to kill him? He's surrounded by an army of humans with those strange weapons."  
  
Jon shrugged. " We'll figure out something."  
  
Felicia nodded. " We have to try- nothing to lose and everything to win."  
  
Morrigan thought for a moment, then stepped back and bowed to the three of them. " Then take our wishes with you. I hope you find a way, for all our sakes."  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Two nights had passed since then. Dimitri, Jon, and Felicia, who had been supplied at the incubi camp, had been traveling across the plains of Aensland House when Felicia stopped dead and lifted her ears up. All around them, the plains seemingly went on forever- rolling grasses with scattered trees and herds throughout it. There were no villages left, however- they had all been burned by Pyron's army, and the smell of burning flesh hung thick in the air.  
  
Dimitri noticed and stopped too. " What is it? Something..."  
  
He was going to say more when Felicia went " Shhh," and went back to listening.  
  
" It sounds like wing beats," she said. " Wing beats on the air... Something's flying at us."  
  
Dimitri nodded, and then began transforming into his half-bat form. " Where's it coming from? Can you tell?"  
  
She listened another moment, then pointed back the way they had came. " Over there. Not flying very high, either."  
  
Jon sniffed at the air, then shrugged. " Can't get a clear smell out here. The smell of burning flesh is still too strong."  
  
Dimitri beat his own wings and soon was soaring towards where Felicia had pointed. A low-lying cloud obscured his vision, and then he almost collided with a very surprised Morrigan. Barely dodging her, he made a crash landing on the ground, rolling to absorb the shock. Behind him, Morrigan landed and ran forward to him.  
  
" Dimitri!" she said. " Are you all right?"  
  
Dimitri stood up and shook his head. [Damn, that hurt,] he thought. Finally clearing his head, he replied in dazed tones.  
  
" Morrigan? What the hell are you doing here?"  
  
She shrugged. " I've come to help. This is something that will affect all Darkstalkers- the Ruler of Makai should be present."  
  
Dimitri's confusion fell away in a sudden wash of anger at her.  
  
" Damn it, Morrigan! You need to stay with your people! This isn't some game were playing out here! We're heading towards what may very well be our tombs!"  
  
Jon and Felicia (who had heard Dimitri crash) had come running towards him. When they reached him, they both spoke at the same time.  
  
" Morrigan?" they both asked, bewildered by her sudden appearance.  
  
" I know that!" Morrigan said, her chin jutting out in what she no doubt thought was a defiant pose; to Dimitri, she resembled a child who has been told no and doesn't like it. " That's why I'm coming to help!"  
  
Jon was about to say something, when Dimitri surprised everyone with his sudden vehemence. His face was twisted in anger.  
  
" You idiot!" he cried, barely keeping a hold on the anger that washed over him. The force of it even surprised him. " You have no idea what we are doing! You've lived your whole life pampered and indulged! Are you really so arrogant that you think you have anything that can help us? Do you think this is just another royal game? All three of us are probably going to die, and I know that and I accept it. But you probably haven't even thought about it! Your father isn't here to protect his little girl anymore, Morrigan, and there's nothing for you to do- nothing you CAN do- except go back to the Incubi."  
  
Morrigan, who throughout his speech had looked taken aback, finally turned away. She muttered something (it sounded like "Fine") and then flew off, without looking back. Jon and Felicia stared amazedly at Dimitri.  
  
Dimitri shook his head. " Come on, guys," he said, sighing and turning away. " Let's get going. We're burning moonlight out here."  
  
Still silent, both followed him. Dimitri wondered himself why he had exploded like that.  
  
[ It wasn't just the danger,] he thought. [Hell, if Morrigan gets killed, it would probably be a good thing- she'll make a shitty ruler. And I wasn't that angry... was I?]  
  
He shook his head to clear his thoughts. He didn't know it then, but it wasn't just anger or the pain of hitting the ground that made him blow up at Morrigan. It was a budding love in him that had made him want to protect her. A love he didn't want to recognize in himself.  
  
Morrigan, meanwhile, was having her own thoughts. Tears streaked down her face.  
  
[ What did I do to deserve that?] she thought. [ That bastard!...]  
  
These thoughts, however, were interrupted by another.  
  
[ What if he's right? I really didn't think about getting killed.. Do I think of it as a game?]  
  
Throughout her life, Morrigan had had an interior inferiority streak, mostly caused by her father Berial's negligence. The man had never really been proud of Morrigan (he'd simply had too much on his mind to bother with the little succubus), and this caused Morrigan to develop a subconscious thought pattern that told her, in no plain terms, that she was never quite good enough. It reasserted itself now.  
  
[ He's right, you know... you really can't help them. Not you, Morrigan. Your just another pampered princess, good for nothing. You can't even save your people.]  
  
[ Shut up!] she screamed at it in her mind.  
  
[ Why? I'm telling the truth. And you know it...]  
  
In the air over Makai, Morrigan's tears fell. 


	13. The Castle of Moongrace

LEGALITES: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
Hello once again, my fellow fanfiction.net readers! Here's Chapter 13. Been a while between updates, but school and life eat rather large holes in my schedule. I've also been working on two other stories; those of you who write know exactly how difficult it can be.  
  
On a different note, I have a request to make. Does anyone here watch the wonderful anime "Big O" on Adult Swim (Cartoon Network, between 11:00 and 1:30, Sunday-Thursday)? I'm a big fan of the show (those of you who watch it have probably recognized the "SHOWTIME!" I put in every chapter), and I want to know if anyone has any opinions on the recent happenings. Put it in your review. If anyone does, I'll add a review to my own work explaining my own opinions, and we'll see if it clears anything up. I love the show, but Lord, is it complicated.  
  
So now, without further ado, it's....  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 13  
  
The Castle of Moongrace  
  
Dimitri and his companions had traveled in relative silence for the last three days. Dimitri was in a foul mood, mostly from his eruption at Morrigan. Besides the fact that he actually felt bad about it, he couldn't figure out why the hell he'd done it. Normally, he would have just said "Thank you, but no," instead of giving her a tongue-lashing. He was silent as he brooded over it, circling the events of that day like a vulture over a fresh kill. Jon and Felicia, sensing his mood as well as being somewhat freaked out by his outburst, were silent as well.  
  
The silence was broken on that third day. The three companions, traveling through strangely thick woods in the middle of the Aensland plains, the three companions broke through the dense woods. As they exited, every one of them fell silent, struck dumb by what they saw before them.  
  
It was a castle. Had it not been for the forest about it, it would have been visible for miles. As it was, they hadn't even seen it until they were already upon it.  
  
The castle stood high above the forest, it's tallest tower stretching twenty stories in the air. It's surface, made of black stone that Dimitri guessed was obsidian, was etched with intricate and beautiful runes and drawings. A glittering rose was etched on the tallest peak, and in the middle of it's bloom an enormous sapphire, easily big as a man, gleamed in the night. The drawings were all blue, the same azure color of the Ebonrule's markings. Instead of looking forbidding or dark, as almost all castles do, it looked glorious, a testament to the will and vision of it's builders, a brand in the night. Felicia was enraptured by the soaring castle, Jon was amazed, and even Dimitri, brooding vampire that he was, felt his spirits rise as he gazed at the magnificent castle.  
  
The castle was about a mile away, in the middle of a clearing. Dimitri looked at the others, finally shaking off his amazement.  
  
" What is this doing here?" Dimitri asked them.  
  
" Don't know. Never heard of a forest in Aensland territory, much less a castle in the middle of it," Jon replied.  
  
" It's beautiful," Felicia said, her voice full of awe.  
  
" Yes, it is," Dimitri said, and for once he couldn't even put up his poker face. A grin, completely unself-conscious, spread on his face as he walked towards it.  
  
" What are you doing, Dimitri?" Jon asked worriedly. He didn't like the idea of heading towards any abandoned castles, even one as beautiful as this.  
  
" I'm going to see what's inside," he said. " If Pyron's troops passed through here, they would have had to seen it. They may have went in, and stationed a garrison force. It's what I would do, if I were in his place."  
  
Gripping Ebonrule in his hands, Dimitri threw one last comment over his shoulder.  
  
" And besides, I have to see what's inside. Curiosity has gotten the better of me."  
  
Jon sighed, and said, " Curiosity killed the cat."  
  
Felicia looked at him indignantly, huffed, and went to join Dimitri.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Unbeknownst to the three travelers, Pyron never went near the castle. Unfamiliar with the plains and just having a vague sense of Pyron's army and it's location (mostly gathered by Jon's nose as he attempted to track them on the air currents), they had traveled twenty miles to the south of where Pyron's army had went. Not that it mattered; Pyron's army had moved south when it hit the coast, where unexpectedly heavy resistance had shot up amongst Jedah and his supporters. Pyron, who had thought that his army was invincible, was getting beaten back by the Merman, Sasquatch, and other Darkstalker armies that Jedah commanded. This little surprise had made Pyron move south, in an attempt to find better strategic locations in the rocky southern cliffs. The travelers had unknowingly drifted right on course to his army's current location.  
  
The castle the three were looking at had never been officially documented by the Aensland family. Every member of the royal family took an oath that both the location and origins of Moongrace were a secret, to be broken only in times of need. All who discovered it were either bribed into silence or slain. But even the rulers of Makai didn't know the full truth.  
  
Long ago, thousands of years before any of this story ever happened, there was a war. A war that had so many consequences, took so many lives, and ruined so many worlds that even to this day, it's effects are still being felt. This war, taking place over the entirety of this universe, was waged between two great armies. On the side of Good lay the Four Races. The Four Races, consisting of humans, dwarves, trolls, and orcs, was a multi-world alliance that had existed in peace for several centuries. They stood for what was right in all the worlds.  
  
On the other side lay the demons. Creatures so dark that they bent reality itself just by existing. These monsters, coming out of the Twisting Dark that exists in the place that belongs to neither the living nor the dead of mortals, existed for one thing. The damnation and corruption of souls.  
  
These two armies fought for over a century. The end result was that the demons were driven back. Makai figured very heavily in this victory, and although the ties between worlds were split as technology was pushed back to non-existence and magic was weakened, some worlds still have tales of Makai, the world of shadow that drove the demons back. Moongrace is always present in these tales.  
  
Moongrace was the capital of Makai, in the exact center of it's single continent. Moongrace was built, not by slaves working for a king, but by men and women who volunteered for the work. These honorable people wanted to create a beautiful castle, a symbol of all that the Four Races stood and fought for. They succeeded, and Moongrace stood the test of time when it's builders and inhabitants eventually died or left. Building Moongrace was an act of love, not servitude.  
  
It had stood empty for countless ages, and the forest around it protected it. Few travelers wished to press through the thick woods, and Moongrace itself supported this forest, in the middle of the plains, feeding it with it's magic. And that was how Moongrace had been, silent and grand, until Dimitri stepped inside.  
  
And awakened it's defenders.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Dimitri was amazed. The castle had no moat that he could see, and the enormous iron gate was open. He had lifted it by touching a rune next to the gate, one that said "Open" in the Old Tongue. Such power was unknown in this day and age. A gate of the same size would be too large for even the strongest runes to affect. The art of runecraft had fallen quite far in his day, and was more of a hobby than an actual magic.  
  
He stepped inside, and heard the gasps of Felicia and Jon mix with his own as he gazed at the spacious grand hall. It made his own castle look pitiful in comparison. An enormous table lay in the middle, with room for three thousand men, and beautiful, rune-covered tapestries draped the walls. Suits of armor stood guard between each, symbols of strength and honor, holding onto various weapons. Dimitri didn't know why, but he sensed something in them. Dismissing this feeling as simple nerves, he walked farther into it. Jon and Felicia followed, Felicia's eyes wide with the delight of a child gazing at a wondrous new toy, and Jon's nervous, gazing about for potential dangers. He felt something in this place, and he trusted his instinct. It wasn't necessarily bad, but it wasn't good, either.  
  
As he continued forward, Dimitri bumped his spear against the long table, and dropped it. He bent over to pick it up. Doing so very likely saved his life.  
  
The armor beside him had lunged forward, swinging it's broadsword in a horizontal arc. If Dimitri had been standing, it would have cut his face neatly in half. As it was, he felt it pass by, ruffling his hair. His combat instincts took over, and he thrust Ebonrule into it's breastplate. The armor took no notice, and prepared to swing again. Jon leapt forward and grabbed the arm with his jaws, trying to keep it from splitting Dimitri's skull. He snapped his head to the left, and the entire arm broke off with a loud clanging noise. The helmet turned to look at him, and Jon saw what looked like a ball of lightning inside it. The helmet headbutted the werewolf, bloodying his nose and forcing him back.  
  
Felicia, meanwhile, was involved in her own fight with a spear-carrying armor that was attempting to run her through. She agilely backflipped over it's thrust and kicked it in the helmet. Her thickly padded feet delivered a blow that knocked the helm off. When the helmet fell, the entire thing shuddered and fell apart, and she saw a bright light inside the downed helmet wink out. She looked over at Dimitri and Jon as they fought the armor, which had now decided to bash Dimitri's brains out. It's left arm swung in an arc, and every time Dimitri managed to lift Ebonrule to block it. The impact rang out in the air, and Felicia saw how Dimitri's arms shook with each ringing blow. The armor would eventually wear him down with sheer strength.  
  
Rushing towards them, Felicia hollered out, " Aim for the head! I think their souls are in there!"  
  
Jon, who had been clawing the breastplate in a frantic attempt to help Dimitri, grabbed the armor's helm with his hands and tugged hard. The helm came off, and the armor fell apart. Dimitri stood up, arms shaking with the blows it had given Ebonrule. Ebonrule's runes glowed dully, as if it, too, was weary.  
  
Gazing at the fallen statue, Jon said, " What the hell-"  
  
" LOOK OUT!"  
  
Three tentacles suddenly shot through the air right next to Jon's head, gleaming tips sharp as knives. An armor that had come to life behind Jon was instantly decapitated, it's raised mace falling out of it's gauntleted hand. Jon, who had been sure the tentacles were going to end his life prematurely, ducked a little late and whimpered loudly.  
  
The tentacles retreated to their position on Morrigan's back. She stepped out of the shadows where she had yelled to Jon.  
  
Dimitri gazed at her, and for the moment his adrenaline (still rushing from his recent battle) drew all the anger at her out of him. His question was pure confusion.  
  
" Morrigan? What the hell are you doing here?"  
  
Morrigan looked at him, gave him a glare that could have frozen the blood of an Eskimo, and then turned to Jon.  
  
" Are you all right?" she asked, steadfastly ignoring Dimitri.  
  
Jon, who was still too freaked out to do much, nodded his head. He stood up, shaking. He missed the irony that although she had kept him from painting the wall with his brains, she had almost caused him to die of a heart attack.  
  
" Good. None of you saw that last one.." she looked about. " This isn't a good place to be. More of the armors could come to life..."  
  
She now looked at Dimitri, and she clearly meant to give her voice a let's-get-to-business sound, but to Felicia, who had spent a lot of her life listening to others and had gotten good at telling someone's true feelings, their was an undercurrent of hurt and hate, like a black stream, running below her words.  
  
" Why are you here? Pyron's army went north of here."  
  
Dimitri looked at her, and with the adrenaline gone found that he was now mad at her. " Have you been following us?" he accused her.  
  
She snorted haughtily, and said, " Yes, I have. Now, why are you here?"  
  
Dimitri, whose arms still felt like well-kneaded dough, answered, " Jon's been smelling the air currents to try and find where Pyron's army is at. We're upwind of them, so we get the general idea, but we can't pinpoint his location." He drew in a deep breath to calm his nerves, and said, " What is this place?" Looking around, he gestured with his hand. " I've never heard anything about a place like this. It's beautiful, although," he said, a small grin appearing on his face, " it's well-defended. I'd think it would appear in the history books somewhere. It's ancient."  
  
Morrigan was about to reply when a tapestry on the far wall suddenly lit up. Azure and crimson runes lit up all over it, blazing to life. The tapestry showed a scene of men in black robes and hoods, one holding a spear. Dimitri looked at it and began walking towards it. He heard a voice in his mind speak to him.  
  
*KNOW YOUR OWN PAST. KNOW WHAT HAS COME BEFORE. KNOW WHAT YOU ONCE WERE...*  
  
Felicia, Jon, and Morrigan cried out at him to stop, but before he could he touched it- and was drawn in-  
  
Blackness. 


	14. Journey into Memory

LEGALITIES: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]-Indicates thought.  
  
Hello once again, fellow fanfiction.net readers! I've got a new fanfic up you might enjoy reading. It's a Big O one-shot, but it's a rather large spoiler. If you haven't watched the show, you are apt to become more confused than a hungry baby in a topless bar. However, for those that do watch the show, it's set in the last episode, when Roger has his "vision" while he was sinking into the lake with Big O. The name is " The Wakening of the Wanderer," and it details my own personal opinion on most of the show's themes.  
  
As for Darkstalkers, here's Chapter 14. Big shout-out to my readers and reviewers- particularly Tiger5913 (glad to have you back, Tiger!), Galandria the Vampire Queen, and all my fans!  
  
And now, it's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 14  
  
Journey into Memory  
  
Dimitri was spinning through darkness, falling through dream and nightmare, heading towards the one concrete reality of this world...  
  
Blackness.  
  
He was in a courtyard. It was just like when he had traveled back and viewed his own sins, but he felt that this had happened long ago. How long ago, he had no idea. He didn't know why he knew, much as a compass doesn't know why it must point to true north- it just does.  
  
Dimitri looked around. Unlike before, he could move his eyes. It was night on Makai, and a bright moon rose into the sky. On the face of the moon, the Grinning Man was seen, his eternal cheerfulness radiating down towards the planet he watched. Faint stars, weakened by the sheer brightness of their lunar companion, glowed dimly in the velvet darkness. The courtyard Dimitri was standing (existing? floating?) in lay near the side of Moongrace. Although thousands of years later trees would only grow in the soil next to it, supported by it's power, the closest trees here were several miles away. A cobbled stone path ran up to a door in Moongrace's side that Dimitri hadn't seen on his first visit here. The place was a meadow, and a few beautiful trees grew here and there. The wind sighed softly through their leaves, whispering as it went. Dimitri looked up at Moongrace, once more in awe of it's beauty. The full moon rose up behind it's towers and cast a silvery light upon them. The black castle seemed pleasant and somehow right in the moonlight, and although Dimitri did not know it's name then, he would have perfectly agreed with it. The castle's beauty was four-fold in the moonlight.  
  
Dimitri heard a huffing, panting sound, and he turned. Behind him were five riders. Each was wearing a black, hooded cloak, and Dimitri felt his heartbeat speed up. These were the ones he had seen when he had been feeding on the human soldier. Dimitri studied them as they approached.  
  
The people he were watching wore a strange, silvery armor underneath their cloaks, and some of them were carrying strange weapons he'd never seen before. Though he did not know it then (and it was only later, when he began researching the history of Moongrace, that he found out), these weapons were firearms, rifles and shotguns, to be exact. These men were riding creatures that looked like wolves, but they were enormous- each was as big as a horse. They seemed gentle creatures, though, and one nuzzled and licked it's rider when he dismounted. The creature's rider patted it's head and said something to it that sounded like, " Good boy." The courtyard's cobbled path clicked with their footsteps as their booted hills strode down the path. Dimitri tried to walk after them, and discovered he could. He found out, not very surprised, that they could not see or hear him. They entered the stout oaken door in Moongrace's side, and Dimitri followed them. Though they shut the door as soon as they entered, Dimitri simply walked through it, feeling a moment's disorientation but otherwise unharmed. He followed them through Moongrace's halls, and eventually they reached what had been termed at the time the Conference Room, where the current generals of the Four Races met.  
  
Dimitri walked in with them, and gazed about in awe. A large military force was gathered here, and he saw four different races. One he recognized, but the other three were entirely alien to him. Humans sat together with strange, human-looking creatures that had dark green skin and were larger than the humans. Their hands looked strong enough to crush rock. One in particular, sitting back from the others at the head of one of the two long tables in the hall, was enormous. Dimitri guessed him to be almost seven foot tall, and about three hundred pounds (none of it fat). His hugely muscular arms looked like green marble columns. He had an eyepatch over one eye, and what little hair was on his head was tied into a ponytail. Dimitri had no idea what his race was, but he thought he was a leader of some sort. A giant sword rested on the table next to him, and he was wearing the strange, silvery armor the riders were. All the creatures in the hall were wearing it.  
  
The other two races Dimitri didn't recognize were studies in contrasts. One race was short, the tallest barely reaching four ft. high. They were broad and stocky, and heavily bearded. They were human in features, although proportioned differently. The other race was tall, and even their shortest members easily reached six foot or more. They had long arms that stood by their knees when they stood up, and their entire body was lanky and muscular. They had large, hooked noses and two tusks that stuck outside the corners of their mouths. Their skin was green, but bright, like newborn leaves in springtime. The hair that covered their heads and forearms was a bright red color.  
  
At the head of the other table sat one of the small creatures. He wore a battle-helmet with an insignia Dimitri easily recognized: a howling wolf. He sat next to one of the firearms, his hand never straying far from it.  
  
At the top of all this, what Dimitri guessed were Dukes sat alongside a round table. All wore helmets and shields emblazoned with axes, wolves, and other symbols. They were a mixture of the four races present here.  
  
The robed men walked up to them, and the Dukes (as Dimitri thought them) turned around. When they saw them, they nodded to them.  
  
" Yes? Jason, Lucadra, what news?" one Duke asked. He was one of the tall green-skins, and Dimitri felt that his voice would be at home in a dragon's throat; it was deep and rough, and yet had it's own strange beauty. His red hair, swept down in a crest from his head, swayed as he talked.  
  
One of the black robes took off his hood, and although Dimitri was afraid he would once more see himself, he only saw a normal human instead. The human had brown hair and eyes, and his face was haggard. He was young, and his face bespoke someone who has suffered too much, too soon. His eyes were badly blood-shot.  
  
" We've done it," he said, his voice a hoarse whisper. Dimitri's eyes widened as he saw the fangs in his mouth. He was a vampire!  
  
" What?" another of the Dukes yelled, his small and wiry body almost leaping from it's seat. " What do you mean?" His shout carried far, and conversation ended throughout the room.  
  
Another black robe took off their hood, and Dimitri saw it was a woman. She was hauntingly beautiful, with black hair and eyes. Her face was as lined with care and pain as the man's.  
  
" We have mastered Chaos," she said, and her voice was a whisper too. Her eyes were also blood-shot, and Dimitri finally figured it out; they had not fed in a while. With the strain of having to pump too little blood too far, the heart of a vampire pumped harder, and the veins became enlarged, primarily in the eyes and hands. Dimitri, his own hunger just recently assuaged, knew how they felt.  
  
The green-skin who had spoken before spoke again. " What do you mean, Lucadra? If you have mastered Chaos..."  
  
Without saying another word, Lucadra lifted her hand. Dimitri saw that the veins were visible there as well. She concentrated, and fire erupted in her hand, merrily dancing. The soldiers in the room were all visibly amazed and awed, and a collective gasp emitted from them.  
  
The fire wavered, then collapsed as Lucadra felt the effects of using her power with too little blood. She gave a weak cry and would have collapsed to the stone floor if another black robe hadn't caught her.  
  
The man looked at her, and then back at those near the round table. " We need blood," he said hoarsely, his body shaking as he fought to stay conscious. " We've mastered Chaos, but now we can't produce red blood cells. Our psi needs it... we need it..."  
  
He shuddered suddenly, drawing in breath. His breathing was harsh, labored, the breathing of a man near death. The Dukes looked at one another, then one (a human, this time) shouted: " Men! We need blood! Somebody get a cup-"  
  
The large, one-eyed green-skin Dimitri had noted before had rushed to Lucadra's side. He had grabbed his sword and now cut his forearm with it. He dropped his sword down and put a cup out under the flow of blood from the wound. The blood was just as red as a human's. He then handed the cup to the fallen Lucadra. She put it to her mouth, and her fangs went into the dark liquid inside. The hollow area inside her fangs filled with crimson as she drew blood into herself. Vampires do not actually drink blood, for inside their stomach it does them no good; it must be drawn into the hollow fangs, where it is taken to special glands that make it fit for use in their blood vessels. Lucadra sighed audibly when she was finished, and looked pleadingly around. Several goblets were already being filled, the men cutting themselves and then stoically placing goblets beneath the drip as their lifeblood flowed out. These were then handed back to the five black robes, all of whom were taking blood as fast as it came. When they were all restored to good health, the one-eye spoke.  
  
" Lucadra, what happened?"  
  
-Hate to leave you like this, but this chapter was getting pretty long anyway. Review me please- and if the "psi" mentioning confused you, it will be explained. You'll see...  
  
Next Chapter: the truth of the past and Traveler's return! 


	15. What Dreams Have Fallen

LEGALITIES: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]-Indicates thought.  
  
Here I am again, people. As I promised, I will reveal the secret of psi, and Traveler is back! Sorry it took so long to update (poor Galandria is probably suffering mental breakdowns trying to figure out the "psi" reference) but I've been extremely busy these past few days. The most amazing thing I've done is begin a huge cultural experiment. This experiment is a synopsis of Big O! I want to make it a "Expert's Guide" to Big O, and the first section is up. It'll take a while, but read it if you love Big O!  
  
Enough of that. It's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 15  
  
What Dreams Have Fallen  
  
Lucadra looked up at the green-skin. Her blood-hunger slaked, her bloodshot eyes were finally returning to normal.  
  
" You know that the demons hate fire," she began, her voice still slightly hoarse and shaky. " but not just any fire. A fire elemental will hurt them where a flamethrower will not. They fear psychic fire."  
  
One of the Dukes spoke up. " Yes, we know. But only a Firestarter, one of those born with that power, can control fire. It's too chaotic."  
  
The one-eye spoke. " Anything chaotic in nature is beyond our control. And of the things we can control, only electricity works on the demons, and that's only in high amounts. You know that."  
  
The man spoke up now, and his voice, though still gravelly, was stronger. " Yes, we've never been able to make fire controllable in our psi, and the same goes for the wind, the water, the animals..." he coughed, dryly.  
  
Lucadra began speaking soon after he had stopped coughing. " We've been studying for a long time now. Finally, we discovered the problem. Chaos is too unpredictable, and the mind cannot understand it enough, cannot grasp it fully enough, to control it. But what if Chaos was stopped for a little while? What if enough energy was used that all the chaotic energies were halted, long enough to grasp their meaning? We found out how to do that..."  
  
Dimitri's eyes widened. He had no idea what psi was, but he knew what they were going to say next. It was what he did every time he used his magic. He wondered if psi and magic were one and the same.  
  
Lucadra fell short of breath. Panting hard, she motioned for the man to continue their story. He did so, eyes closed as if remembering something.  
  
" Of the cells in our bodies, few work as hard as the red blood cells. Each of them has the molecular equivalent of a nuclear power plant inside. ( Dimitri had no idea what a nuclear power plant was, but he got the general idea well enough.) We changed our own gene structure, reordered it around... the result was that we can burn our own red blood cells whenever we must. The resultant heat and energy can then be used to halt Chaos, make it workable. The result-"  
  
He raised his hand. His eyes narrowed, and his teeth gritted. Fire flickered from his fingertips, glowing and pulsing as if the man held a hot coal between his fingers. He opened his hand wide and the flame went out. He fell back, breathing hard. Dimitri, fascinated and bewildered by what was apparenlty the true origins of his race, stared at them, not knowing whether to believe it all or not.  
  
One of the human soldiers said, " You mean, you aren't human anymore, are you?"  
  
Lucadra shook her head. " No, we're not. Our genetics are incompatible with human DNA."  
  
The human nodded his head, and said, " What are you, then?"  
  
Lucadra smiled, a bittersweet smile.  
  
" We? We're vampires."  
  
Blackness.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Dimitri awoke (arrived?) on a small, grassy hill that sat above a fog-shrouded nothingness. It appeared as if nothing existed below that mist, and nothing except the hill Dimitri was standing on and the starry night sky above existed above it. He looked around himself. An old oak tree, beautiful and moving slowly as if in a breeze (but no breeze was present) sat on the hill to his left. And sitting off to one side of it, tobacco smoke rolling above his turned back, was-  
  
" Traveler!" Dimitri said. He was still too shocked and dazed to find much of wonder in Traveler's appearance. " What are you- where am I?"  
  
Traveler let out another puff of smoke. " You are in the Twisting Dark, my friend. A place that lies between life and death. A place of limbo, and also a place where you and I may talk."  
  
Dimitri found that even in his current state he could be alarmed. " Between life and death? Am I dying?"  
  
Traveler shook his head. Dimitri noticed that just like the tree, Traveler's hair blew as if in a light breeze. It's red locks swayed slightly as Traveler talked. " No. Unlike most who reach this place, such as the Wanderer who arrived a few days ago, you are not dying or even close to it. At the moment, your physical body has aged exactly two seconds past the time it touched the tapestry in the Main Hall of Moongrace. Time flows differently here, and what is a long time here is but a short time in your reality."  
  
" Moongrace?" Dimitri said dumbly. " What?"  
  
" Moongrace," Traveler said, taking another puff of his cigarrette, " is the castle you entered."  
  
Dimitri nodded, and then a sudden strange terror seized him. " Traveler, I had a vision-"  
  
Traveler cut him off with a wave of his hand. " Yes, that was why the tapestry called you. It wanted to show you your history, something vitally important if you are to kill Pyron and save your world. Killing him will be simple compared to what you must do to really heal your world."  
  
Dimitri began to speak again, but Traveler once more cut him off. " Let me tell you the story of the Sundering War. It will explain what you need to know."  
  
" Thousands of years past, Four Races, equal under the laws of friendship and honor, spread over the universe. The Four Races were noble and honorable. They consisted of humans, dwarves, orcs, and trolls. The dwarves were the smallest ones, the orcs the dark green creatures, and the trolls the tall green-skins you saw."  
  
" In these days, technology reached unparalleled heights, allowing for their travel to the stars, and they even discovered how to control matter and reality with their minds. They called it psi, short for psychic power."  
  
" But, suddenly appearing out of nowhere, demons struck. You have faced Pyron, so I need not tell you what they were like, although Pyron and his kind are not the only type of demon."  
  
" The Four Races battled them, with their psi and technology. But in the end, it was not enough. The demons and their foul magic destroyed all in their way. On Makai, a desperate plan was born. Five humans, seeking to gain control of Chaos and it's workings, began research on it. You saw the five of them, and what they became. They called themselves Vampires, which in their tongue meant "studiers of Chaos." Their research led to the Four Races initiating a huge vampire program, and thousands of humans chose to become vampires to fight the demons. They drove them all the way back to hell."  
  
Dimitri, staring at him, said, " If vampires truly were so noble, why do humans hate us now? And why did you say "foul magic"? I use magic..."  
  
Traveler, his voice angry, said, " No, you don't. That's one example of demon corruption. They've twisted the words around so you think you use magic. What you do is psi. It requires only concentration and is born within you, but magic requires words... words that worship and consecrate the demons with every sentence. It doesn't seem like much, but when somebody uses real magic, no one suspects the wrong there. They think it's just another version of what they think is magic, never knowing the truth until it's too late."  
  
Shaking his head, Traveler continued, " The demons hate your race. They hate your race above all others, for it was you and your kind that drove them back. So they cursed you. Vampire DNA was corrupted so you could not stand the sunlight. It also gave birth to mutations. The entire incubi and succubi race is actually a mutation of vampire DNA, which is why the two races are so much alike. It was the demon's revenge on you."  
  
" But the worst part of their revenge was against Makai itself. Most humans in other worlds can use psi, but on Makai, the demons cursed the entire planet. No human of your world can use psi. And the demons have been slowly influencing your two races, the Darkstalkers and the humans, into hating each other. The armies Pyron commands are the fruits of this hatred."  
  
Traveler flicked his cigarrette butt off the hill, and it spun into eternity. Dimitri, whose mind was just beginning to sort out what had just happened, watched it fall.  
  
" Now go back, Dimitri," Traveler said. " Go back to your world, and show them truth. Show them that endless hatred with no reason other than prejudice and race will damn them all- is damning them all. Go back..."  
  
Dimitri fell, rushing past dream and nightmare, falling towards reality, and far off he heard singing and shouting and the hammering sound of rain....  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Dimitri was back in Moongrace. Morrigan's shout of " Dimitri!" was still echoing in the halls. Dimitri turned back to them. They shrunk back, for he looked aged and changed to them.  
  
" Morrigan," he began, " what I have seen..."  
  
Morrigan was about to speak, her fear for him overwhelming her hurt towards him, when another voice spoke. This one was calm, collected, and utterly insane.  
  
" What you have seen will not matter in a few minutes, vampiric freak."  
  
From the shadows stepped a tall figure, but all attention was riveted towards a giant sword held in front of him, glowing with a light Jon suddenly thought of as a corpse's light. The sickening, dull-blue glow filled the room with light. 


	16. Essence of Hate

Legalities: I do not own Darkstalkers or any characters thereof.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
Hey people. Here's the next chapter for my loving fans (all three or four of you!). For my reviewers:  
  
To Tiger5913: On your reviews... no comment. (Pyromania + WAY overcharged sex drive = Tiger5913 :)  
  
To Galandria: Mental breakdowns are fun! Trust me. I have them all the time :). And yes, the tall stranger is Donovan, as you'll see soon enough. Good guess!  
  
And now, ladies and gentleman, it's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 16  
  
Essence of Hate  
  
Dimitri stared at the figure before him. Although his mind was still dazed, he knew that what stood before him was not good news. The eerie light, which Jon and Dimitri had unwittingly labeled "corpselight" at the same time, filled the hall. Even the walls seemed to flinch from that unholy, pale blue light.  
  
" Who are you?" Dimitri asked, pointing Ebonrule at the figure. " And how did you find us?"  
  
The figure chuckled. The laugh was the aural equivalent of the corpselight, and Jon and Felicia visibly flinched at it. Morrigan was unnerved, and even Dimitri's stony mask trembled under the force of the laugh. It sounded like the laughter of the insane. The figure moved forward as it talked.  
  
" Me? I am the purger, ridding this world of such as your kind. My name, such as I have one, is Donovan." The figure stepped into a shaft of moonlight from a window, and as he did so the Darkstalkers saw it was a human male, wearing nothing but a pair of blue pants and a necklace upon which an amulet of gold hung. Several scars crossed his body, long and ragged gashes like fault lines in the rock of his chest. His long brown hair was tied back into a ponytail, and his jaw was square and solid, undercutting a face seemingly made of rock. All of this was normal, but the eyes would have convinced anyone they were dealing with something monstrous. The eyes were brown and totally insane.   
  
However, it wasn't the clear-cut insanity in them that made them odd. The strangest part about Donovan's eyes was the fact he had three. One was set in the middle of his forehead, and it's pupil was blood-red. It glanced about madly, randomly, as if physically showing the madness of the brain inside.  
  
" As for how I found you," he said, and as he did Dimitri thought he saw fangs, such as a vampire had. " it was simple enough. I smelled the taint of hate and hurt on that one."  
  
He extended a finger towards Morrigan. " It reeks off her unclean flesh. It was simple enough to follow her. Eventually, we reached this castle, and here we are." He laughed, mouth thrown open, and Dimitri saw that his eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him; there really were fangs inside his mouth.   
  
" I'll give you credit, freak. You surprised me and Pyron. You defeated B.B. Hood, even though she was a Fragment..." he shook his head. " Stupid girl. Always wanting more. That's why she became a Fragment of Greed. She was crazy... even her name was crazy. " B.B. Hood." It's a joke on the "Little Red Riding Hood" story. She said it meant Big Bad Hood. Damn fool." He laughed again, and once more it grated on Dimitri's mind as if it were a metal grinder and he was a knife being sharpened. Dimitri cut him off with a single sentence, shouted at him over the echoes of his laughter.  
  
" Why are you doing this? Your a vampire too!"  
  
A shriek of such inhuman hate and rage rippled out from Donovan's throat that Dimitri's blood didn't just run cold; it completely froze over. That sound was not something any natural creature could make. Donovan leaped through the air, clearing the distance in seconds. Dimitri barely had time to lift Ebonrule before Donovan struck. His sword, glowing with it's hellish corpselight, shook when it hit Ebonrule, but held it's ground. Donovan, still shrieking, pushed down with his sword.  
  
Out of nowhere the azure fire of Ebonrule blazed out. Donovan was pushed back by the flame, and the corpselight of his sword diminished suddenly, as if it was trying to protect itself by withdrawing it's sphere of influence. The cleaner, somehow purer fire of Ebonrule lit up the forgotten halls of Moongrace. Donovan, rage still clear on his face, raised his sword again. Off to one side, Felicia, Jon, and Morrigan stood, stunned.  
  
" I am not one of your damned kind! I am a human!" he shrieked, still holding his sword aloft. " And I'll kill each of your bestial kind until their is nothing left of you!"  
  
Felicia was suddenly hit with understanding. She knew what he was.  
  
" Your a Dhampir, aren't you? One of the vampire and human half-breeds?" she said, her face looking puzzled.  
  
Shrieking once more, Donovan flung himself at her. She leapt out of the way, and kept talking as she dodged his attacks. Her voice was completely even, as if she was having a calm discussion at dinner, rather than ducking and weaving through the attacks of a crazed madman.  
  
" I understand now. I met a Dhampir once. He hated himself. Neither the humans nor the Darkstalkers accepted him... he was a lot like you. And he was full of hate, so much so that he enjoyed killing. He always tried to control it, though... tried to control it so he wouldn't hurt anyone. But you never tried, did you? You just decided to take your hate out on Darkstalkers, hiding behind the idea that we were beasts." She flipped over his next attack and kicked him square in the face. When she landed, she looked up with a look of pure fury in her face. Jon had never seen her so mad. Her voice portrayed that anger and fury into the air, seeming to fill it with her emotions. " You just decided to hate for no reason, didn't you! It's people like you that have ruined our world! Pitiful people who can't simply grow up and do what's right, regardless of how hard it is!"  
  
She hissed then, and launched herself forward, claws extended. She leapt over his swing and slashed his face. Her claws left ragged lines in his cheeks. He shrieked at her again and, abandoning his sword-swinging, simply punched her with his left hand. She stumbled backwards and fell, and he raised his sword to strike.  
  
Ebonrule flew through the air, a blue missile, and struck Donovan in the face. He crumpled and fell, writhing and kicking. Felicia got up, looking at Dimitri.  
  
" Thanks," she said. " Thought he had-"  
  
Her sentence was cut off as Donovan's hand grabbed her leg and flung her to the side. The hand then grabbed the spear in his face and pulled it out. It made a sickening sucking noise as he pulled it out. The hand threw the spear aside, and then Donovan got up. His entire face was a single long gash, with the exception of the eye in his forehead. It remained whole and untouched.  
  
" Good shot," he said, and then, horrendously, he grinned. His lips were in four pieces, and grinning caused them to split even more. " But this is not my truth. Count yourselves lucky. Not many people live long enough to see this. "  
  
His face split apart, along the gash where Ebonrule had struck him. Coming out of it, like a moth from it's shell, a nightmarish face emerged. The entire body split as new muscles were made, and the skin sloughed off like a nightmare coat. The thing before Dimitri, Jon, and Morrigan opened it's mouth and laughed.  
  
The face looked like a dog's jaw, but elongated and mutilated. A single gigantic eye still sat in the middle of the forehead, and two smaller, beady eyes sat behind the jaw in wrinkled folds of flesh. The creature shut and opened them twice, quickly in succession, making a noise - clack! clack! - that echoed in Moongrace's halls. The arms were thick and muscular, and the hide an unnatural faded purple color. Human and vampire faces, all with looks of utmost agony on their twisted faces, moaned and screamed upon his torso. Coarse black hair cascaded down it's back like a horse's mane. The hands were titanic claws, and one clutched the sword. It took two steps forward and roared at them.  
  
" I am the Fragment of Hate," Donovan said, and a sickening tongue lolled in his mouth as he spoke. Thick ropes of saliva coated it, and horny buds grew all about it. " I live for malice, and exist for pain! I am the abomination of life!" It clacked it's jaws again. " And with Pyron at my side, I will purge this world in flame!" It leaped at Dimitri, swinging the sword. Dimitri rolled out of the way, and the enormous broadsword created a shockwave when it hit the ground. Dimitri got up and swung Ebonrule at him. Donovan dodged backwards, and then the faces on his body emitted a piercing scream. The air rippled with the force of it, and then it hit Dimitri. He was blown backwards and into the wall behind him. He fell to the floor, and lay there, dazed.  
  
Donovan was going to leap at the vampire and kill him when Morrigan's tentacles struck his arm. The points buried themselves in his arm, and began drawing him backwards. Donovan snarled, and jerked forward hard. Morrigan was flung upward, then down as gravity asserted it's hold. Her tentacles snapped back, black blood gushed out of the wounds she had made. Donovan snarled at her, then snarled again as Jon leapt onto his back. Grabbing his head, Jon meant to jerk off his head, just like he'd done to the Fragment of Greed. The eye in Donovan's forehead looked up then, and Jon felt a rush of sheer hate. The world turned black and white before him, and before he knew what had happened he had fallen to the floor. Donovan turned and lifted his sword.  
  
Hissing the whole time, Felicia had launched herself at Donovan's arm from behind. She sunk her right claw into his meaty forearm and slashed at the back of his hand with her left. The unholy tendons sheared off, the monster's hand twitched and relaxed, dropping the sword. Howling with rage, Donovan shook his arm and tried to batter Felicia senseless. She held on, kicking his face and hissing.  
  
Morrigan got up, madder than hell. She had never been tossed aside so easily before, and she was pissed.  
  
[ Got a present for ya, big boy,] she thought, forming a fireball in her hands.  
  
Snapping out her right hand, a fireball streaked across the room, and it struck Donovan in the back of the legs. He shrieked and tumbled. Felicia, seeing her chance, leaped off and then pounced on his face, slashing away. Blood splashed as her claws rended at his face.  
  
The faces on his body shrieked again, and Felicia was blown off like a leaf in the wind. She rolled as she hit the ground and turned about. In front of her, Jon was standing, but he wasn't moving...  
  
" Jon!" she said, approaching him. " What are you doing?"  
  
The only answer she got was a snarl and a snap of his jaws. Jon was attacking her! She leaped backwards, wondering what had happened to her love. Jon advanced, growling at her.  
  
Inside his own mind, Jon saw a field of black rent throughout with electricity. Bolts flashed across this endless dark.  
  
[Looks like the inside of a thundercloud,] he thought.  
  
In his mind, an eye suddenly opened in the middle of this blackness. Though he didn't know it, the lightning-torn darkness about him was Jon's own subconscious. The eye was twice as large as Jon, and was as red and insane as the one in Donovan's forehead. The eye looked at him, and Jon felt it trying to take over. He howled in his mind and resisted it, but it was carrying him away in a black tide of murderous rage, an ocean of hatred he could not help but drown in....  
  
Screaming, Jon summoned all his energy to fight it. Thinking of Felicia, he tried to drive back the hate.  
  
In the real world, Jon suddenly stopped moving. His whole frame shuddered, and then he fell to the ground on his knees. He started hacking and coughing. Felicia, still too scared and surprised to come near him, stood back.  
  
" Felicia," Jon said, and his voice was thick, like he had a sore throat, " get... away... Uwaaak!"  
  
This last was the sound of Jon suddenly regurgitating something. A black liquid poured out of his jaws, dripping onto the stone floor and spreading out. A single hellish eye gleamed out of the mess on the floor. Jon glared at it, and then drove his claws into it, puncturing the eye. More black fluid sprayed out between his claws. The liquids on the floor slowly dissipated away afterwards.  
  
Felicia looked at Jon. " Jon, what was... that?"  
  
Jon looked at her, breathing hard. That had taken a lot out of him. " Don't know. Did I... hurt you?"   
  
She shook her head. " No. Are you all right?"  
  
He wiped his jaws with the back of his hand. He still felt woozy, but okay. " Fine. Never been better." Getting up, he looked back at Donovan, currently tangling with Morrigan and Dimitri. " Let's get him," he said, running back towards the battle. Felicia ran beside him.  
  
As this scene was playing out, Morrigan had hooked her tentacles into Donovan's arm as she had done before. He did the exact same thing, jerking his arm back. But as she left the ground, Morrigan spread her wings. The push of her wings against the air stopped his arm and made Donovan stumble. She began flapping her wings, dragging Donovan along. He jerked back, and she was dragged forward, but she kept flapping and eventually got her control back. She threw a fireball at him and he dodged. The dodge cost him, though, because Morrigan used the time to grab onto a nearby stone pillar. With this secure anchor, she began dragging Donovan towards her, like a fisherman who's caught a large fish. She planned on wrapping him up in the tentacles and crushing him when he got close enough for it. Donovan screamed at her, but her tentacles were sunk in the arm with his working hand (the other was useless from Felicia's assault) and he couldn't hold his sword to cut them off. Growling, he began hammering on the tentacles with his torn hand, using it as a club.  
  
Dimitri had recovered from the shock of Donovan's screams and looked up. He saw Morrigan dragging Donovan to her, and he ran forward to help her. Donovan had hooked one massive table with his arm, and the weight was keeping Morrigan from dragging him any farther. She bared her teeth and pulled as hard as she could, but got him no farther. Donovan's horrid teeth gleamed at her as he grinned, and the faces on his body opened their mouths, ready to loose a hellish scream.  
  
Dimitri got there first, though, and he ran Ebonrule into Donovan's side. The holy spear cut through his flesh and jabbed into his vital organs. Donovan screamed as Ebonrule's fire flared up and seared most of his internal body systems. The pain this brought gave him tremendous strength, and he snapped his arm back. The heads of Morrigan's tentacles were ripped off, still embedded in his flesh, and she screamed in pain. Blood shot out of the severed ends of her tentacles. Dimitri was struck by Donovan's flailing hand and was knocked backwards, into another of the great tables in the hall. Donovan staggered around to face him. Morrigan was still on the pillar, drawing in her wounded tentacles. Her look was a mix of pain and anger.  
  
Donovan had trouble drawing breath, and the world swam before him. He knew the end was near, and had a wonderful plan. He was going to consume Dimitri with hate. The others were good fighters, but Dimitri and his spear were the greatest among them. If he was consumed by hate for all life, he would kill them and succeed where Donovan had failed. The eye in his forehead concentrated on Dimitri, and Dimitri felt a rush of madness descend on him. The world went black-and-white...  
  
Ebonrule's sapphire glow suddenly surrounded Dimitri, and he felt the madness rush away. Donovan stood before him, stunned. What could possibly drive back his power? Pyron himself had granted it to him! Snarling, he raised his sword for one last attack. He roared, and black blood pouring from his wounds, he leapt forward.  
  
He was met in mid-air by Felicia, who had tackled him from behind. She had rolled her body into a ball, and the force of her blow knocked Donovan past Dimitri. The abomination was knocked onto one of the tables, laying spread-eagled. Felicia jumped onto the table over him, and he tried to get up. Felicia's claws flashed. The eye in his forehead, the one that could infect others with Donovan's consuming madness and rage, was ripped apart. Donovan screamed once, and then lay still. Felicia, breathing hard, got off the table. As she did so, they all saw a ghostly image of Donovan's human body lifting out of the demonic corpse on the table. Several horned imps appeared next to it, grabbing it and slobbering their laughter as they did so. Donovan's screams rang in the hall, human now. The entire thing dissappeared like smoke as they watched.  
  
Turning to his wounded companions, Dimitri said, " Everyone okay?"  
  
Morrigan looked back at him. Her tentacles were still bleeding, but not so badly; her tentacles could regenerate, though at the moment they hurt like hell. She would be okay. " Yes."  
  
" Same here," Felicia said. She sounded tired.  
  
" Yeah," Jon said, still spitting. Sometimes his spit would have black flecks in it. He still hadn't got rid of the taste yet, that god-awful bitter taste of whatever had been inside him.  
  
Dimitri nodded towards them, and then saw Jon grin. " What?" he asked.  
  
Jon, still grinning, said, " Who says we stay here tonight? Because I sure as hell don't feel like hunting for a campground."  
  
Felicia agreed. " Neither do I," she said. 


	17. Dreams in the Dark

LEGALITIES: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS NOR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]-Indicates thought.  
  
Hello, fellow fanfiction.net readers! Here's Chapter Seventeen, wherein much Morritri results. This should please one of my fans (you know who you are). For those of you reading my Soul Caliber fanfics, I finished "Falling through Nightmare" and I've got the first chapter of the prequel up. Hope you enjoy it.  
  
To the reviewers:  
  
True Earth Rune- Thanks for the kudos. Dimitri fics are rare, which is weird. He's a much better character than any of the other Darkstalkers. In terms of sheer potential, only Morrigan and Lilith come close to the possibilites. Is Dimitri a power-hungry madman, a noble warrior trying to save his world, what? (My own take: man trying to save his world from Morrigan's rule- she would be a BAD ruler.)  
  
Galandria- Thanks for the continuing reviews. Read my other stuff please- even if you haven't read the book/played the game/watched the series my fanfiction centers on, most of my stuff is AU. You won't be confused (much). Love your reviews!  
  
Enough of that. It's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 17  
  
Dreams in the Dark  
  
After Jon's comment about a place to rest, Dimitri looked into the sky. It was still dark out, but his inner sense of time said that the dawn- and the sun it brought- wasn't very far off, two hours at most. The party took up rooms in the main castle, spreading out for privacy. Jon and Felicia took up a bed near one of the large banquet tables, spreading their bedrolls and laying down side by side. Felicia wrapped her arms around Jon, and he wrapped his about her. Dimitri, who always felt vaguely embarassed by the casual intimacy of the two (when they bedded down at night, he usually slept turned away from them- he felt ashamed to see them like that), went into a side wing to try and find a nice, dark place to rest. He searched a couple rooms in the hallway before finding one that suited him perfectly.  
  
The room was small and mostly bare. A fireplace, long empty, lay in the far wall. A single window, done in ornate stained-glass with a cross and a rose design upon it, was set high on the right wall. The left was bare, save for spaces where hooks were set. The hooks, probably for hanging weapons, were old and rusted. He went to the corner next to the window and put his bed spread down. He would be below the shaft of sunlight coming in. He laid down, thinking.  
  
His mind whirled. Although fighting Donovan had occupied his mind for a while, it now returned to what he'd been shown through the tapestry.  
  
[ My God,] he thought. [ The humans and the Darkstalkers... we're one and the same.]  
  
The enormity of it all weighed on his mind. Vampires were the noble sacrifice that won the Sundering War? Humans that could wield Psi (his mind kept wanting to say magic- he forced himself to use the word Psi instead)? A curse? The hatred between humans and Darkstalkers, mere manipulation by demons?  
  
And he was supposed to fix it?  
  
[Where do I start?] he thought, his mind reeling. There was too much to do. Simply too much. Laying on his back, he put one hand over his eyes. [ Where does a man start? How do you fix something ages in the making?]  
  
He laid there, his mind wheeling. Outside, in the hallway, Morrigan stood. Dimitri's psychic shield wasn't up. The enormity of the problems in his mind was such that he couldn't have raised it if he wanted too; as it was, he had forgotten all about his shield in the past few days.  
  
As such, Morrigan could sense Dimitri's emotions. Many legends of many worlds stated that succubi (and their male counterparts, the incubi) fed off of sex. This was not true. Actually, a succubi fed off emotions. They preferred happier emotions (some succubi's way of inducing those emotions had led to the legends) but could feed off all of them. It was in this way that the succubi and incubi had risen to dominance in the Darkstalker hierarchy. They were excellent statesmen and politicians- being able to sense emotions in others allowed them to know exactly if they should be a jolly companion or a sympathetic ear, the furious friend or the shocked observer. The Felinos even had a saying on the subject: " If you think no one will understand, talk to a succubus."  
  
Morrigan delved into Dimitri's emotion and stopped, wondering. Dimitri's mind was a whirling tornado. She sensed something huge in his mind, an enormous weight. His mind circled and pried and prodded it, but he could not move it from his mind. One part of her mind wondered if it was her he was having trouble dealing with. Morrigan's innate arrogance reasserting itself, she decided she was the problem and strode into the room. Dimitri, lost in thought, didn't even notice her until she cleared her throat with a loud "Hrumph" noise. He snapped his head over to her, startled. Seeing it was Morrigan, he removed his mind from the truths he'd learned long enough to say, " Hello, Morrigan."  
  
Morrigan looked at him haughtily. She was still mad over his outburst three days ago. She meant to give him what for.  
  
" Hello? Is that all I get? How about "Thank you?" Think you could manage that?"  
  
Dimitri had enough on his mind to worry about. He turned on his side, propped up on his elbow, and looked at her. " Morrigan, can't we do this some other time? I've got a lot--"  
  
Morrigan interrupted him. " No, we do this now. You had no right to yell at me out there. You ought to be on your knees, begging me for forgiveness."  
  
Dimitri's temper flared. Here he was, trying to figure out how to save the whole damn world, and this stuck-up, bratty-ass princess was pissed because he'd yelled at her. Well, tough luck.  
  
" Damn it, Morrigan, grow up. I probably shouldn't have yelled at you, but I spoke the truth then and I speak the truth now. You shouldn't be here."  
  
Morrigan, who'd expected something like this, found it still stung. Her anger flared, and the wings on her head raised up indignantly. If the look of anger hadn't been so clear, it would have been funny.  
  
" I just saved Jon's life back there! If it hadn't been for me, he'd be dead! And I helped kill that thing! If you can't remember, it was I who had him! If it hadn't been for me grabbing him, you wouldn't have been able to stab him!"  
  
Dimitri sighed. He'd hoped to end this quickly, but apparently those hopes had just been dashed. He sat up, groaning with effort. His ribs hurt like hell where Donovan had thrown him against the wall.  
  
" Okay, okay. You did help. I'll admit that. But Morrigan..."  
  
" What? Huh? Am I just not good enough?" She was madder than ever, and hurt inside too. She didn't know why she hurt inside- which made her feel worse than ever.  
  
" No, it's not that, it's just..."  
  
" That's what it is, isn't it? I'm just not good enough for you." Morrigan felt the tears in her eyes and hated herself for it. She hated Dimitri even worse for making her feel like this.  
  
" Morrigan, no! Listen to me!" Morrigan tried to interrupt again and he cut her off. " No, listen. I don't want to see you hurt." There. He'd said it. And against his better judgement. He waited for her reaction. Morrigan would probably break loose laughing. It was the corniest damn thing he'd ever said, but the only one that expressed his feelings in words. Feelings he didn't understand and hence, didn't like, to boot.  
  
She stared at him. She'd expected him to say that yes, she was too weak, not quite good enough ( the voice in her mind, the mocking-sweet voice, whispered these things over and over to her). She expected him to blow up again, to rage at her.  
  
She hadn't expected the rather tender thing he had said.  
  
She sat down on the floor, not quite collapsing but close to it. She looked at him, cocking her head to the side. " What?"  
  
Dimitri sighed. Great. He'd stunned her with the magnificent stupidity of his words. " I said I don't want you getting hurt, Morrigan." Soon the laughter would start.  
  
Morrigan had been stunned, but not by the corniness of his phrase; she'd been stunned by the care in it. " That's rather sweet of you," she said, still holding her head in that cocked, quizzical look. Her bat wings had sunk to the sides of her head, almost as if they were dumbfounded too.  
  
Dimitri, not knowing quite what to say after that, only scratched his head awkwardly. He had no idea how to proceed after a comment like that. In all his years of existence, he had never had much experience in situations like this. Those few female Darkstalkers who showed an interest in him were always either trying to kill him or take his power.  
  
Morrigan looked at him, and her face softened. " Why do you want to protect me at all?"  
  
Dimitri shrugged. " I honestly don't know. I just do."  
  
Morrigan shook her head. " That's one of the nicest things anyone's said to me," she said. " That was honest, I mean. When you grow up in Castle Aensland, you hear people say sweet things all the time. Sweet things that are no more real or substantial than a dream. Sweet things that are forgotten as soon as they are spoken." Her tone had a bitter edge to it. Dimitri wondered if someone had whispered such things to Morrigan, once. Judging by her tone and face, he thought they had. More than once. Probably more times than he could count.  
  
" People were constantly lying," she continued, her head drooping until she was looking downward. " I don't think a single honest person lived there. Everyone was selling something, and no one stopped to think about what they were doing. Everyone lived for the moment... no one cared what a broken promise might cost them later, so long as it was convenient at the time." The wings on her head drooped downward. She was holding back tears. She was thinking of all the times Berial had lied to her, that court members had lied to her...  
  
The time her first love had lied to her, laying on the other side of the bed.  
  
Her whole life was one big betrayal.  
  
" Not everyone's like that."  
  
Morrigan looked up at Dimitri. He was so different from him... the man who'd promised to marry her. Instead, he'd disappeared soon afterward. She heard he'd moved to a far outlying duchy somewhere. She had been beyond caring at that point- her heart was numb. It was after that, after being betrayed so deeply, that Morrigan had changed. She had become superficial, turning into just another liar in a world full of them, making promises and breaking them, wrecking the hearts of many a suitor. All because of one man and a broken promise.  
  
She gazed at Dimitri, wondering if anybody could really keep their promises in this world.  
  
" Really? Isn't everyone just another liar at heart? The soldier who promises to come home, the young couple proclaiming their love... all liars. Nothing's real and true in this world." She shook her head. Dimitri lowered his head, looking at the floor to think, and felt emotions warring in him. The truths he had learned were forgotten for the moment. Love for this sad woman before him warred with shock that Morrigan, who he had dismissed as a superficial, materialistic girl with a woman's body, could have such deep feelings. No wonder she was so seemingly callous. It was her only defense against the world. A line from one of his favorite poems came to him then.  
  
[ What tears of scarlet you have bled,] he thought.  
  
He looked up at her. " Morrigan." She looked up at him, that sadness in her eyes. " It isn't always like that. There is truth in this world. Truth and honor are really all we have." He reached out his hand to her. She took it. " Old wounds always hurt. But there's always a chance for a better tomorrow." He held her hand tightly in his own. " We can change things. Your suffering doesn't have to be repeated."  
  
She looked at him, and her eyes had a sparkle of sad laughter in them. " Do you really think you can change anything, Dimitri? What can anyone do against something so much a part of who we are?"  
  
Dimitri shook his head. " Evil is a part of us, but not a part you have to give in to. It's a part of the soul that you can stand against." He glanced at Ebonrule as he said this. " The evil in us doesn't have to become us."  
  
Morrigan leaned in closer to him, then embraced him. Her hands encircled his neck, and she pressed herself against him. " Dimitri," she said, holding him.  
  
" Yes?" he said, enjoying the feel of her next to him, the heat of her body. He held her tight, his arms wrapped around her.  
  
" Show me," she whispered, placing her face next to his ear. " Show me what is real in this world..."  
  
Dimitri made no reply to her, just pulled her close.  
  
- And there you go. (Silverlocke980 shakes head and laughs.) Damn. Didn't know I had it in me. I wrote a serious love scene. I'm about ready to cry reading it. (Sniffle.) Oh well. Send me reviews- maybe you guys can cheer me up. (goes off hunting for Kleenexes). 


	18. Madness

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
Hey people. Silverlocke980 here (as if you didn't know by now :). This is Chapter 18 of "Deeping Dream". For the reviewers:  
  
Galandria- Yeah, Silver has a soft side (Sniffle.). And Thanksgiving was great- I managed to get fat and happy, all at once! I haven't had much of a chance to read Johnathon Tailban's fanfic yet, but will as soon as I can. Probably while you yourself are reading this.  
  
However, you're misspelling my name- it's SILVER, not SLIVER. Common mistake. Just switch the I and L, and you've got it.  
  
Johnathon Tailban- Hey! A new reviewer! Welcome to the paths of my madness. Galandria alerted me to your fanfic, and I'll try to read it when I can. Judging from your name, Jon is probably going to be the main character... but that's fine by me.  
  
True Earth Rune- Hey man. It's good to have a new recurring reviewer. For this fanfic, Tiger5913 used to review regularly, but she's been MIA for some time now. Galandria now reviews almost every chapter, and that makes me feel loved, but it's always good to have another regular fan. Try reading my other stuff if you have a chance.  
  
Enough with that. It's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 18  
  
Madness  
  
  
  
Pyron's Encampment. Sunset.  
  
Pyron sat, in his enormous black throne in a room no light pierced, and thought of the night before. Donovan had been slain. Incredible. Donovan had been one of the most powerful fragments he'd ever created. Of all the thousands who had submitted to Pyron's will and their own dark desires over the years, Donovan was one of the few who willingly submitted to his darkness. Most drowned in the flood tide of their own evil; Donovan drank of it, loved it. His hate had been food and drink to the insane Dhampir.  
  
And yet, last night, a few hours before dawn, Donovan's soul had came to him, carried as ever by the imps whose sole purpose was to drag the souls of the damned back to their demon masters. Pyron had stared at Donovan, shocked. He hadn't bothered to check on Donovan's progress; he was sure the Dhampir's power would be enough. Dimitri had the Ebonrule, yes ( the right side of Pyron's face throbbed as he thought of the holy spear; Pyron had never suffered such agony before) but Donovan could drive anyone mad with hate. All Donovan had to do was infect Dimitri, and it was over. And Donovan knew that- he was not a fool.  
  
But he had been slain. Pyron had absorbed Donovan's soul into himself, Donovan screaming all the way, and he had privately worried. How? What could possibly allow them to deny his strength? He had worked for centuries untold for this moment; he would not be undone by mere children.   
  
But to slay them, he must see them. Pyron opened the blazing eye in his mind, closing his real eyes. And suddenly, as if he were a disembodied spirit, he saw the world in hues of black and white through a single great eye. In his mind he traveled to Moongrace, speeding over the landscape, watching the trees and grass and the last rays of the sun rush past him in a blur. He reached the castle, and gazed through the windows (he could not enter; the building had crosses upon it). Jon and Felicia were just getting up in the main hall; Dimitri and Morrigan were laying side by side down a hallway nearby. Pyron watched them, noting that Jon and Felicia were both white in his mind's eye, the color of good souls; Morrigan's soul was both white and black. She was torn between good and evil. Dimitri himself appeared gray; while holding the Ebonrule, nothing of Dimitri's character shown through, and he had the same hue as stone.   
  
Pyron nodded, miles away, in his chair. So that's why Donovan couldn't kill them. Dimitri was impervious to magic. Pyron wondered at this, then thought of Ebonrule. Damn that spear! It must be protecting Dimitri, blocking Pyron's power! Far away, Pyron growled. How dare it make a mockery of him! He would break it under his burning heel. But how to kill Dimitri? The others were nothing to him, but that spear...  
  
As a demon, Pyron's purpose was the damnation of souls. He could whisper in their minds, drive them mad... but which of them to infect? Which to assault? Dimitri himself was immune, so which of the others could kill him?  
  
He laid back, closing his mind's eye, forcing himself to calm down. He concentrated on nothing, letting the answer simply flow through him as it always did. He had an instinct for evil, and it never led him wrong. Sometimes he wondered where it came from... but that was a question he never pondered long.  
  
[ Morrigan.]  
  
He snapped his eyes open. Morrigan. She was the key. The weakest of them. The one closest to the dark.  
  
And in the perfect darkness, Pyron laughed.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Moongrace. Half an hour later. Night.  
  
Dimitri and Morrigan woke up, dressed, and went back to the meeting hall. Both were silent, lost in their own thoughts.  
  
Dimitri was still trying to figure out how he was going to save the world (always a distracting thought), but was also busy thinking about the new woman in his life. Part of him also found this funny.  
  
[ Great timing, genius,] it told him.  
  
[ Shut up,] he told it back.  
  
Still, he got the point. This was probably very bad timing on both their parts. Morrigan was now officially the Ruler of Makai ([Although,] Dimitri thought, [ if Pyron has his way, there won't be anything left to rule,]), and Dimitri was now the only one who knew the truth about Makai. Still, he felt the way he felt, and now he thought he understood the poets he had once ridiculed. He didn't know if love conquered all, but it was doing a fine job kicking his ass.  
  
Morrigan, for her part, was wondering about what Dimitri had said last night. Truth... love... could it be real? Could anything be real?  
  
Morrigan self-hate, although it had disappeared last night, came back. She heard it, a whispering, mocking-sweet voice that threatened madness, in the back of her mind and beyond conscious control. She thought something sounded wrong in that voice, something that seemed out of place... but she couldn't place her finger on it. The only thing she could think of was that it seemed louder, somehow, more there in her mind.  
  
[ Oh, poor, poor little Morrigan. Do you honestly think Dimitri loves you? (and as if from far away, almost an echo, Morrigan heard laughter.) Pathetic little girl. Why would he love you? There's nothing to you, nothing real- just like this world! Why, everything falls through in the end, nothing holds! The same with Dimitri. Maybe he was just lonely last night. A one-night stand doesn't constitute love, girl! (more laughter, far away in her mind.)]  
  
[ Shut up!] she screamed at it. [ Leave me alone!]  
  
[ Oh, I will... for a little while,] it spoke back, and now Morrigan thought that it sounded deeper, somehow. Also, it seemed so LOUD...  
  
The voice gone, Morrigan shook her head to clear it. Dimitri, lost in his own thoughts, saw but did not ask about it, nor the troubled look on her face.   
  
If he had, he might have saved himself a great deal of trouble later, but he was too absorbed in his own problems.  
  
Far away, Pyron laughed. Ah, yes. Things were off to a wonderful start. He was going to enjoy this. Outside the stone walls of his room, the human soldiers gathered about the camp shivered and wrapped themselves up in warm blankets. The night had suddenly gotten cold.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Dimitri and Morrigan stepped into the Great Hall of Moongrace. Dimitri noted with sadness the condition of the room. It had been perfect and beautiful when he'd entered, but the subsequent fight with Donovan had wrecked a large portion of it. Half the tables on this side were broken up, and Donovan's dead corpse lay on one of them. Just looking at it gave Dimitri the shivers. His ribs still smarted. Getting thrown into stone walls was not one of Dimitri's favorite things in life. Things usually broke, and it wasn't the walls.  
  
Jon and Felicia had finished packing up their supplies, and now Jon was going around the room, looking for things that might be useful. Noting the almost hungry way Jon was looking at things, Dimitri smiled. He hadn't been kidding about being a thief and wanting to steal; even though the masters were long gone, this had once been someone else's stuff, and Jon was more than delighted to take it. A free chance to give in to temptation and not feel bad about it.  
  
Felicia, for her part, was watching as Jon spied a large ruby, glittering in a shield on one of the walls. Jon, his lupine mouth grinning, began trying to climb up the wall. Using his claws to dig in to any cracks in the wall, Jon clambered up and reached the shield. Latching his feet in more-or-less securely, Jon grabbed the ruby and pulled. It held fast.  
  
Felicia, watching him with the weary air only long-time companions develop, said up to him, " Jon, you're going to get yourself killed."  
  
Jon, busy pulling on the ruby, said back, " No I won't. Have you seen the size of this thing? I could get rich off of it!" He tugged harder.  
  
Felicia sighed. " Don't you think that riches are the last thing we should worry about?"  
  
Jon, stopping to pant for a minute, said, " Hey, once this is over, I plan on retiring to a nice castle somewhere. And to do that," he tugged again, grunting with effort, " I need- aah!"  
  
Jon's tugging had resulted in him inadvertantly breaking the steel hooks that held the shield to the wall. The poor, overstrained hooks had held on as long as they could, but Jon's tugging had finally broken them. The round buckler let go of the wall, and Jon, still holding on to it, went with it. He yelped as he fell. He flipped over, and the shield hit the ground first. The shield and floor met with a clang. Jon was left sitting on it, rattled around a bit but otherwise okay. Felicia, who hadn't been very worried about him to start with, walked over to the dazed werewolf. The comical expression of surprise on Jon's face caused both Dimitri and Morrigan to forget their problems and erupt with laughter. Felicia crouched to his level, looked him in the eye, and sighed.  
  
" You are incorrigible."  
  
" But you love me anyway," he said, smiling.  
  
" Yes, unfortunately I do." She shook her head, then stood up and headed back to their supplies. She grabbed some, and turning around saw Jon lugging the shield around on his back. Staring at him, she asked, " What are you doing?"  
  
Jon, looking at her as if offended, said, " What, do you think I'm just going to leave this here?"  
  
" Actually, yeah."  
  
" But I want it." He put on a "puppy-dog" face; since he was a werewolf, it was amazingly effective.  
  
" Fine, keep it. But don't you dare complain when you get tired." She turned around, and started handing packs to Dimitri and Morrigan, both of whom were still chuckling. Jon, delighted that he was going to be able to keep his new-found treasure, trundled over and began gathering packs. Hooking the shield to his back with a leather strap (another thing he'd managed to take from Moongrace), he picked up several of the little pouches that held their food and water. They left, walking out the great doors of Moongrace into the night. Dimitri turned to look back, and saw Moongrace as the full moon rose up behind it's obsidian towers. He gazed at it, silver in the moonlight, and a thought rose up, unbidden.  
  
[ This will be my home.]  
  
He turned, not exactly comforted by the thought (he was still rather certain he was going to die on this trip) but buoyed by it nonetheless, and followed the others. Behind him, empty again, Moongrace waited. Waited, as it had throughout the endless waltz of centuries, for life to fill it once again, as it had so long ago.  
  
- And there you go. This is probably the last chapter till after Christmas, so wait for me till then! Merry Christmas to all of you, and may God bless you!  
  
-Silverlocke980  
  
This was written on December 13, 2003. 


	19. Dreams Fade

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS NOR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
* *- Indicates italics. (Notepad is driving me nuts! Aaaargh!)  
  
Hey people! I'mmmmm bacccck! Now, to the review cave! (whooshing noise as Silverlocke 980 jumps into pile of letters)  
  
(Silverlocke flips through review letters) Hmm... Hey! Tiger! You're... back... (oversized sweat drop appears on forehead) That's... nice... (quickly erases Tiger5913 jokes from story) OK! Glad that's cleared up! (Wipes sweat from forehead) About Morrigan... I don't *hate* her exactly- she's just so much fun to mess with. (Burning poker advances forward) And as for work and school, they're both pains. Wish life would leave me alone long enough to write my stories. (grumble grumble)  
  
(Picks up a different review) Hey, Galandria! You rather surprised me in my SC fanfic- didn't expect to see you there. Good to know you read my stories, though! And as for your question, the answer is now.  
  
(Looks at another review) And Jonathan Tailban! Good to see a fellow Darkstalkers author here. But, where did you get the idea something bad was going to happen to Jon? (hides revolver with silver bullets behind back) After all, it's not like you didn't KILL Dimitri... (grins dementedly)  
  
Well, that's that. (gets up from letter pile). And now, it's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 19  
  
Dreams Fade  
  
The air over Makai was clear and dry. Few clouds clung to the sable vest of night, and the moon was full and bright. It hung halfway through the sky, shedding it's glow on the world, the Grinning Man cheery as ever. He had seen much in his time, but one wonders if a group like this had ever crossed his ever-present, smiling eyes before.  
  
They stood in a diamond formation, walking fast, not quite jogging but not taking their time either. The long grass swayed lightly in the breeze as the quartet walked on.  
  
Dimitri was in the front, his red hair swaying lightly as he walked with his head down, lost in thought. His mind was full of half-formed pieces of thought, of plan. He didn't know where to start. His arms hung at his side, swaying to match his stride, and in his right hand Ebonrule, spear out, rode shotgun with him. It's ebony length was quiet, with no flicker of azure in it. His stride was strong, military, almost. Without consciously thinking about it, he had reverted to the same marching pace his father's old advisor had taught him.  
  
Traveling a few paces behind him, Jon walked in silence. Jon was half-bent over, the buckler he'd picked up on his back. He loped with the easy grace of a lupine, his left hand sometimes touching the ground as the short werewolf tried to keep up with both of his longer-legged companions. His right hand never strayed from the buckler's edge, keeping it from wobbling and throwing off his balance.  
  
Felicia, next to him, was silent and as lost in her thoughts as Dimitri was in his. Her blue hair swayed as the Felinos bent her head down to think. She did not have the staggering problems Dimitri had, but nonetheless questions rose in her mind. Her eyes half-closed as she thought.  
  
[ Can we survive?] she thought, thinking back to when Pyron's skeletons had attacked her, back in her and Jon's home in Howling Vale. [ I... don't want to die. I think I could, if I was alone, but what about Jon? If he dies and I live...] She shuddered mentally. Oh God. She didn't even want to think about that. [ But what if I die and he lives? He doesn't know it, but his spirit... I think it could break easily. He's more fragile than he thinks... I don't want to hurt him.]  
  
She shook her head to clear her mind. What happened, happened. Jon noticed her head-shake and said, " What is it, Felicia?"  
  
" Nothing," she said, waving her hand to dismiss his question. " Just thinking, that's all."  
  
He nodded towards her and mumbled something, but nonetheless watched her afterwards, snatching wary glances at her when he thought she wasn't looking. She never noticed.  
  
Morrigan, in the back, did notice, however, and that brought the voice back. Once more, it was louder than it should have been, and so deep she thought she could drown in it.  
  
[ Don't you see?] the mocking voice began, laughing in the back of her mind. [ How he cares for her? You'll never feel that, girl, never know it! It's really quite funny, you know. So rich, the daughter of Berial, and yet the one thing you really want is forever out of reach! It's marvelously funny, really!] The laughter echoed in the dark again.  
  
[ Shut up,] she said, but her mental command was weak, with no force behind it.  
  
[ No, I think that this time I'll stay. I want to have fun here, you see? And besides, look on the bright side. At least there will be someone to talk to. Dimitri won't, you know. Now that he has no need of you- or more correctly, fixed his need *for* you- why should he talk to you? You're a toy, girl, a pet. And you don't talk to pets, do you?]  
  
The group walked on, each wrapped in their own minds. And in one mind, cries of sorrow echoed over the laughter in the dark.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
About two hours before dawn, the party came to a small lake. It wasn't very big, but wonder of wonders, a small rock formation lay nearby. The jumbled up rocks were set on each other haphazardly, and a opening in the middle of their pile was big enough for Dimitri to fit in. The long grass stopped near the edges of the pool as somewhat taller trees and bushes, fighting their own little war for control of the water supply, crowded them out. A few well-trod animal paths led to the water, and small piles of droppings lay around them.  
  
Dimitri stopped the party here. Besides the fact that he didn't know if he could find another cave before the sun rose and struck him down, two hours was time enough for a story... a very important one.  
  
" Hey guys, I think we should camp here," he said, looking around for possible enemies. He saw none present, and couldn't sense any either.  
  
Jon, who was still willing to walk farther (and was privately afraid he'd lose the scent trail if they didn't hurry- the trail was getting old) said, " Are you sure? We still have a little while."  
  
Dimitri shook his head. " You're forgetting something. This entire area is almost entirely plains. I don't know if I can find a cave before dawn if we go farther."  
  
Jon nodded. " Alright. I see your point. Let's eat first, though. I'm hungry."  
  
Felicia nodded. " I'll get some kindling." She put her packs down, and headed into a nearby copse of trees that were busy using the lake to support their large selves. Although "large" was a relative term; compared to the trees in the forests of the Wolf Dukedom, they were dwarf trees.  
  
Jon, putting down his packs and his buckler shield (huge on the werewolf; he was short for his race, at five six, two inches shorter than Felicia), rose and said, " I'll see if I can get some thicker stuff. Don't expect much, though."  
  
Dimitri nodded and said, " When we get ready to eat, I have something to tell you all."  
  
Morrigan looked at him and said, " What you saw in the tapestry?"  
  
Dimitri blinked and looked at her. " What?"  
  
Morrigan, with a small note of urgency in her voice, said, " You know, the one in Moongrace. You said you saw something..." Her voice trailed off as she doubted her memory. What if she had just thought that, made it up in her head? And she had just said it in front of Dimitri. The wings on her head slightly fell back, sinking low to the skull as if trying to protect the shattered mind within.  
  
" Yes, I did, didn't I?" Dimitri nodded his head, finally understanding. Relief washed through Morrigan as he said, " Yes. I saw something there, and I'll tell you about it in a minute." He shook his head, thinking about what a shock he had just had. He had been totally dumbfounded by what she had said.  
  
Jon came back, with three small logs tucked under his arms, and Felicia arrived with enough kindling for a small fire. Jon put the logs in a triangle shape, and Felicia put the kindling in between them. Taking out a circle-shaped piece of flint from one of her pouches, she scraped a small piece of steel across it a few times. On the third try, some of the kindling caught and she tried to get it to flare up- it died before it did much more than smoke and blow away. She struck the flint twice more before the kindling caught again, and this time she finally got a small fire going. Putting her tools back in her pack, she took one of the pans and put some water in it. Putting it on top of the fire, she turned towards the others and sat. They all were gathered about the flames, Dimitri and Felicia facing each other, with Jon sitting on Felicia's right and Morrigan next to Dimitri. They all looked at Dimitri.  
  
" While the water boils," Dimitri began, wondering where to start, " I have something to tell you. What I saw in the tapestry when I touched it. The history of our world... and a truth that may kill us all."  
  
He talked for a half hour. The water boiled before then, and that was the single break in the story, when Felicia removed it from the fire for a moment and placed what little meat and fish they had left into it. Setting it back on the fire, she turned around to face Dimitri once more. No one had spoken as she did this. Dimitri resumed when she turned, his voice even as he went through his tale. When he finished, they all gazed at one another.  
  
" My God," Jon said.  
  
[ My race is a mutation?] Morrigan thought. [ What does that mean? Are we demonic in nature?] The mocking voice did not reply. It was busy elsewhere, under the surface of the lake near them.  
  
" What do we do, Dimitri?" Felicia's eyes were calm as she considered this.  
  
" The best we can," Dimitri replied honestly.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Seven hours later. Daylight.  
  
Days on Makai are very short. The planet's rotation about it's axis as it spins in space is very lopsided. Makai's single continent, the result of a very fast tectonic plate movement over the centuries, stays on the dark side for some time, but never lasts for long on the light side. At the moment, it was about high noon.  
  
And the leaping, biting, gnawing things in the water knew it.  
  
- Next chapter: attack of the Corpse Hungers! 


	20. Gnashing Jaws

LEGALITIES: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS/TRADEMARKS THEREOF.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
Hey everybody. Silverlocke980 here, with Chapter 20. And for the reviewers...  
  
To j- Hmm. Interesting notes on myself. I've always viewed my job as an author as that of the recorder- I don't write the story, but rather merely tell it. So I guess that results in being somewhat impersonal... (ponders this for a minute)... I'll try to work on it. Interesting note, though! (and kudos for reading my fanfics!)  
  
To Jays Arravan- hey, thanks for the kudos.  
  
To Galandria- if you felt bad for Morrigan *last* chapter, wait till you read this one...  
  
To a reviewer- thanks.  
  
To Johnathan- Yes, you did kill Dimitri (through Pyron, but it was you nonetheless, but I ain't mad. Thanks for the kudos, vampire hunter. :)  
  
Chapter 20  
  
Gnashing Jaws  
  
Pyron's Encampment, Eastern coast of Makai. Noon.  
  
Pyron smiled, in the perfect darkness of his obsidian room. It was all starting to fall into place. Morrigan was being slowly driven insane by his voice, and Dimitri had been led to a place Pyron could strike him from. He'd watched the werewolf sniff the air, testing for his army's scent, and the demon had shifted the breeze, making it come to Jon from the small pond. He'd led them there, and they'd walked right into his trap. They were posting a guard, one awake and three asleep. All he had to do now was wait.  
  
Wait until it was Morrigan's turn to watch.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Pond in Aensland territory. Same time.  
  
Felicia looked over the camp. In the light of Makai's short day, it was a pleasant little scene. She wished she could enjoy it more. She had too much on her mind for small pleasures.  
  
She scanned the pond and surrounding area, seeing nothing. She wished the sun were not so bright. Her race had far better night vision than day vision, and she was constantly squinting, trying to block out the bright light. Jon, human now without the influence of the night (contrary to the legends, it was not moonlight but rather night itself that caused the transformation), was asleep to the right of the small pond. He was even shorter as a human than he was as a werewolf, only five four. His white hair blew about his young face as he slept on his back, mouth slightly open, with a black cloth over his eyes to block out the sun. Next to him, the buckler he'd taken from Moongrace lay on the ground, it's handle pointing towards the sky, in easy reach in case of trouble. Morrigan, who would stand watch next, was curled up in the fetal position a small distance from him. Felicia worried about her. She'd started sleeping on her back, but then moaned in her sleep, mumbled something, and curled up into that ball, as if trying to protect herself. Morrigan was such a sad woman. God only knew what she was dreaming about, what she was protecting herself from.  
  
Felicia shook her head. Poor girl. But, in the face of the monsters that live in a dream, there was nothing she could do to help the succubus. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on listening, and heard nothing more than the rustle of the grass in the wind, the daybirds chirping, and the occasional animal. She opened her eyes and sighed. She felt so tired, worn down to the bone.  
  
Last night, as Dimitri told his tale, she'd been thinking. The Felinos had many legends about their beginnings, but one in particular now stood out in her mind. In this legend, it was said that the Felinos sprang from a race of green-skinned humans, humans who had discovered the power of magic (psi, she mentally reminded herself). If what she'd heard from Dimitri was true, than her race was the descendants of these "orcs". She wondered what they had been like, how they had lived, how they had died, what stories they had to tell...  
  
She shook her head, her blue hair swinging about. Enough time for that later. She looked up. Noon. Her watch had ended. Dimitri, before crawling back into the small crack in the rocks (he'd hung his cloak over the entrance to further prevent sunlight from reaching in and burning him), had said that he felt something in the area, something that made his hackles rise. He'd asked them to mount a watch, and they'd worked it out in shifts. Jon had been first, then Felicia. Now Morrigan was to stand watch.  
  
She went over to wake her.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan lay on the bed, the beautiful satin cloth that he liked so much, the satin she had prepared just for him. The satin cloth that was starting to drown her. She fell through it, the satin covering her, swallowing her body whole, groping her and choking her and killing her as he laughed and laughed....  
  
She awoke with a jolt when Felicia shook her. She lay where she was, breathing hard, not hearing Felicia say that it was her turn at the watch. Oh God. She thought it was over. She'd had that dream for weeks, months, after he had left her. It had finally stopped a year after he'd left, a year after her hopes and dreams were shattered. She still couldn't stand satin. Not after that. Not after what he'd done to her.  
  
Sometimes, When someone has suffered greatly, the mind will attempt to block the memory out by suppressing it, driving it under a cloud of amnesia. The subconscious, however, never forgets anything, and is most awake in dreams. Even now, as Morrigan rose up, mere seconds after waking, her conscious mind clouded the memories it had of him, and the nightmare with it.  
  
She got up and looked at Felicia. The Felinos was looking at her oddly. Morrigan composed herself and said, " I'm okay. Just a nightmare."  
  
Felicia nodded. " All right. Remember, your watch is until," she looked up, " the sun gets to there. Okay?"  
  
Morrigan nodded her head, looking up and memorizing the position. As she did, she tried to remember what the dream was about. Strange. She couldn't remember it at all, just that it had something to do with satin. And she hated satin. She didn't know why she hated satin (or, at least, her conscious mind had forgotten why); she just did.  
  
Felicia went to the sleeping bag she shared with Jon and snuck into it. Jon stirred slightly as Felicia laid her head against his shoulder.  
  
Morrigan watched, and the voice came as she did.  
  
[ Well, well! It's my good friend Morrigan! Watching them again? Such sweet sorrow for you, to be so near two lovers such as this! To always be able to see what you want, and never have it!] It laughed, as if this was such a funny joke, the greatest joke of them all...  
  
Morrigan shook her head and walked over to the rock pile. Unfurling her wings, she flap-hopped to the top and sat down. Here, she had a good view of everything in the area. She couldn't think about her problems now; she had to stand watch.  
  
[ Why bother?] the voice asked, as she tried in vain to drive it out. [ If they all die, so what? You mean nothing to Dimitri. Why, if you were to die on this journey, he wouldn't care! You're nothing to him. Nothing at all...] Laughter. [ Oh, child. That you should stand for one who doesn't love you... just like you did before. Just like when he came into your life...]  
  
[ Shut up!] she screamed at it. The voice, taken aback by the sudden ferocity of her mental command, hushed. Conflicting thoughts arose in her mind, a babble that showed, if nothing else, the strength of the memories it had invoked. [ Don't you even talk about him! That's in the past! He had no choice! I had no choice! It never happened! GET OUT OF MY MIND, DAMN YOU!]  
  
Pyron was thrown out of Morrigan's mind, the same insanity that he'd hoped to use working against him. The pain in those buried issues, the split in her mind caused by her great betrayal, were far too strong for him to resist. He'd pushed her too far and too hard, mentioned subjects that part of her mind didn't even realize existed. He'd been thrown out too soon, his mission unfulfilled.  
  
So, when the first Corpse Hunger leapt out of the water, she saw it and screamed out for the others.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Demons have always twisted and perverted life. They cannot create new life; they can only corrupt the old. Corpse Hungers were among their most vile- and effective- corruptions.  
  
Corpse Hungers were created in the Sundering War, and pockets of them lived past their masters. They had brown skin, and stood about two foot tall. Shaped like a tadpole, with a stubby tail and bullet-shaped head, they had two short legs that they could hop with, much like a frog. On the head, two small, beady eyes glared out from the sides, and a large pair of jaws extended under them. And that was it. They were not designed for intelligence, but rather for hunger. They lived in constant pain, always having a ravenous hunger that was impossible to sate for any period of time. They would eat anything, including each other, and with enough prey a single colony could have up to a hundred of the leaping horrors.   
  
This colony had grown to include six full grown adults. They'd almost attacked last night, but Pyron had restrained them with his mind. At night, the party held the advantage; the werewolf had his jaws and teeth, and the vampire had Ebonrule. But during the day, the werewolf was human, and the vampire couldn't even leave his little cave.  
  
Pyron had hoped to distract Morrigan long enough for his Hungers to bite out the throats of the Felinos and werewolf, but her mental divide was too great even for him. But the attack was launched. All he could hope was that he still had the advantage.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan's scream woke Jon up instantly. He was on his feet and moving before his mind even registered what was happening. He opened his mouth to snarl in warning to anything around him, then remembered he was in human form. His eyes catching a glimpse of a small, leaping thing coming at him, he rolled to the side. He saw a flash of brown, and heard a click as the Corpse Hunger's teeth snapped together. He grabbed the buckler on the ground and lifted it just as it attacked again.  
  
The Hunger hit the shield face first. It fell back, snarling and drooling at him, dazed from the impact. He looked over his shield, and was amazed at what he saw. He'd heard of Corpse Hungers, but they were rare creatures that were thought to have finally been stamped out ages ago.  
  
[ Why is an extinct creature trying to kill me?] he thought, then wondered at the weird thoughts one had during times of crisis.  
  
It leapt again, it's enormous mouth open wide, and tried to bite off his face. He lifted the shield, and it slammed into it again. It hopped off, trying to regain it's balance. Jon took the opportunity to smash it with the shield. The impact knocked it down, and several of it's teeth went flying. It lay on the ground, dazed in a pool of blood from it's shattered jaw. Jon heard Felicia cry out, and turned towards her.  
  
Three Hungers surrounded her, leaping about her in an attempt to find an opening. She whirled and snarled, claws flashing in the sunlight as she clawed and slashed at them. One Hunger slipped through her guard and bit the end of her tail, blood spraying out as the wicked edge of it's teeth sheared her flesh. She yelled and slashed it, raking her claws over it's eye. It let go and shrieked, a hellish and grating sound like gravels crunched underfoot. The blood pouring from it's wounded eye caused the remaining Hungers to go berserk, leaping on top of their brother and biting into it's flesh in a feeding frenzy.  
  
Felicia retreated back, watching the monsters eat their comrade. She stepped back warily, glancing at her tail. It was hurt, but would be okay. The monster's fangs had opened big punctures in her sensitive tail, but hadn't cut through all the flesh. She looked back at the monsters and saw Jon past them.   
  
Jon looked at her and glanced at her tail. His eyes opened wide with shock and concern, and he glanced back at the monsters. They had almost finished devouring their companion in the few seconds after they had started. They would soon turn around and go after Felicia again.  
  
Jon took up his buckler and leaped at them. He took the sharp, almost blade-like edge of the shield and pushed down as hard as he could. The edge caught one Hunger and sheared off half it's jaw and face, causing blood to spray everywhere. He'd missed the last one, and it leaped at him, jaws snapping. He punched it in the gut, barely avoiding the loss of his hand to it's gnashing teeth. Felicia, rushing forward to help, buried her claws in the back of it's stubby head. It's brain pierced, it died, jaws still reflex-snapping in death.  
  
Jon and Felicia paused, standing over the corpses of the Hungers, and heard Morrigan scream from atop the rock pile. Inside the small cave below her, Dimitri echoed her, yelling out in pain as a Hunger ripped the fabric of his makeshift doorway apart, letting the sun stream in. Jon and Felicia looked towards them, and both gaped at what they saw. Atop the small pile, Morrigan was fighting for her life against three of the monsters. One of her wings had a bleeding wound in it's bottom, and her face was a study of insane concentration, teeth bared and gritted. Her tentacles whipped about, one headless, the others darting spears. Two Corpse Hungers leaped into the small crawl-space where Dimitri was hiding against the blazing daylight. An azure glow filled the small space as Dimitri grasped the Ebonrule and began his attempt to fight in a hopelessly small space.  
  
Jon and Felicia rushed to help.  
  
- CLIFFHANGER! (chuckles) Sorry, just had to write that. See you soon! 


	21. A Fever of the Mind

Hey people. You've waited long enough, so here's Chapter 21 of Darkstalkers: Deeping Dream. Wow. Barely halfway through the story, and I'm already one chapter past what I thought I'd go. Way back around chapter 10, I thought this would stretch to twenty chapters- but now I think I'll easily get to thirty and beyond.  
  
Kudos to all the reviewers- you guys are great. Someone asked why Jon was so short (I think it was Jonathan Tailban) and the answer is this; I noticed on the game that Jon can duck under almost any attack, and that he doesn't seem very tall when compared to the other characters. So I made him short, to fit in with the evidence. Besides, where else are you going to read about a five ft, six inch werewolf?  
  
You're not here to listen to me gibber on, so it's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 21  
  
A Fever of the Mind  
  
The Felinos have a saying for every subject, whether it be love ( "Like sunshine in winter, a rose growing from a sword"), war ( " A destroyer, but not just of dreams; sometimes nightmares have to be destroyed too"), or food ( "Never, ever trust a cook who won't eat their own makings.") They also have a saying on the subject of the insane, in the form of a riddle:  
  
" What feasts on dreams, and yet hungers for them?  
  
What dwells in shadow, yet walks in light?  
  
Weaker than everything, yet strong as ten men?"  
  
Anyone who has ever met or dealt with the insane can solve this riddle: the mad think they walk in the light of truth when they are wrapped in lies, feed off their own tortured dreams and yet never really sleep, and nothing is weaker than their mental state. The last part, of course, refers to their incredible physical stamina. It is beyond belief, something true in both Makai and our own world.  
  
The same was true of Morrigan at that moment.  
  
Morrigan's mind was fractured, had been fractured since her first love, an incubus whose name  
  
* Garik, his name was Garik*  
  
she never allowed herself to remember, had betrayed her. Half her mind hiding the truth from the other half; it was the only way she thought she had to deal with it. Pyron had cracked the protective shield around her memories, and as she fought, her tentacles lashing, her mind was a babble of voices.  
  
[ You loved him,] one voice cried.  
  
[ He never existed!] another part cried.  
  
[ He ruined you,] one whispered.  
  
[ Lies!][ Truth!][ This can't be happening...] [ Why me?!? Why.... why did you leave me?!?]  
  
At the moment, Morrigan's head was bedlam.  
  
One of the Corpse Hungers, seeing an opening in the twisting whirlwind around Morrigan, leapt forward with a roar. Seeing it, she reacted instantly with the unnatural speed of the insane. Her headless tentacle (it's spear tip had been torn off during the fight in Moongrace, and hadn't regrown yet) came striking like a club, battering the Corpse Hunger so hard it flew off the small rockpile. It struck the ground yards away, twitched once as it's skull cracked open, and then lay still.  
  
The remaining Hungers stayed back, snapping at the tentacles when they could. Morrigan was striking wildly, not using her tentacles like striking snakes as she usually did, but simply flailing about wildly, lashing at everything in range. Dust and rocks flew as she smashed the rockpile again and again. Felicia and Jon had just reached the bottom of the rockpile when both Hungers, abandoning reason as the smell of blood from the bite wound in Morrigan's wing drove them into a frenzy, leapt as one. Morrigan's tentacles, like the whips of an over-enthusiastic taskmaster, soared through the air at them. One lost part of it's right side to her edged tentacles; the other was lucky and managed to escape unharmed. Inside the range of her tentacles, the creatures thought (as well as such things are capable of doing, anyway) that they would now be able to devour her with ease.  
  
They couldn't have been more wrong.  
  
The monsters were inside her whip range, so Morrigan simply switched to her hands and feet. Her right leg kicked out in a full-fledged punt; it struck one Hunger right in the stomach and sent it flying backwards. It hit the middle of the rockpile with a thud, right next to Jon and Felicia. Felicia and Jon looked at each other for a minute, amazed at their companion's newfound strength, and then killed the Hunger with claw and shield. They then heard Dimitri cursing, and ran to help him.  
  
Dimitri was in a very small space, just big enough to lie down in. And the main problem with using a spear as a weapon is that a lot of space is required.  
  
[ Oh great, here we go,] he thought, struggling to get the blazing Ebonrule in the right position. [ Gonna get eaten alive by monsters that don't even reach my belt. Hell of a way to go.] The first monster poked it's head in while he was still trying to reverse Ebonrule. He butted it in the head with Ebonrule's flat end, then did it twice more. It looked at him in a lopsided, almost comic manner, as if offended by being poked in the head like an abberant dog. It then hissed at him. He poked it with Ebonrule again, right in the roof of it's mouth. It bit down and promptly shattered all it's own teeth. It screamed, what remained of it's jaw clenched on Ebonrule, and then Dimitri's foot lashed out, knocking it off Ebonrule and out of the cave.  
  
He didn't know that two were after him; consequently, when the second grabbed his boot, it surprised him. Before he could pull his foot back from kicking it's brother, it had bit his boot. He cursed loudly (this is what Jon and Felicia heard), trying to get his boot back. He could feel the incredible strength in those jaws, the force in those muscles, and wondered that the Ebonrule could survive those gnashing jaws. The monster began doing something... what was it doing? Dimitri tried to shake it off his foot, and then stopped, dumbfounded. It was trying to pull him out. Against all reason, the damn thing was trying to drag him out into sunlight.  
  
[ You have got to be kidding me,] Dimitri thought, somewhat scared at the implications. [ No monster is that smart. Is Pyron... behind all this, somehow? Does he know where we are? I thought we lost him after Moongrace...]  
  
Dimitri easily weighed two hundred pounds, mostly from muscle. The Corpse Hunger weighed about fifty pounds. The result was no contest. The Hunger's striving did not budge him more than a few inches; still, he had been spooked, and badly. If Pyron knew they were here...  
  
The train of his thoughts were interrupted by the shield that suddenly separated the head and body of the Hunger. It's strange tuggings stopped, it reflex bit his boot once more, then relaxed and fell onto the floor of the crawlspace. Dimitri kicked it out. Jon's face appeared in the small patch of light that was the opening of the crawlspace.  
  
" Hey, Dimitri! You all right?" he asked, worried.  
  
" I've been attacked by midgets, but am otherwise okay," Dimitri said. He'd found he was getting a sense of humor on this trip; just another oddity on one very strange journey.  
  
" Good," John said, turning to look at something. " Morrigan and Felicia... hey!" He stared at something Dimitri couldn't see, his jaw dropping and his eyes widening in shock.  
  
" What is it?" Dimitri asked, but Jon didn't hear him. His attention was understandably riveted on what was happening at the top of the rockpile.  
  
Morrigan had the last Hunger in her hands, literally choking the life out of it. The Hunger snapped it's jaws and screamed, but it's cries were weak and half-hearted. Morrigan was, quite literally, strangling it. Her hands were wrapped about it's throat with all the single-minded determination she could muster (which, at the moment, was quite considerable). Felicia, standing nearby in a battle ready position, lowered her claws as she stared at Morrigan in disbelief. Was she nuts?  
  
" Morrigan! What are you doing?"  
  
" Damn you Garik! Damn you! DAMN YOU!" Morrigan cried, punctuating her yells by bashing the unfortunate Hunger's head into the surface of the rockpile. It's eyes rolled wildly as it began to die, it's lungs choked and starving for air. " DAMN YOU!"  
  
Finally, as it died, she dropped it's beaten body. She stepped back, then sat down with a tired, hurt look on her face. She broke out into sobs and curled into a ball, wrapping her wings around her, rocking back and forth slowly, saying something in a low, whispered tone that was almost a whimper:  
  
" Garik.... why?... why did you?... damn you..."  
  
Jon looked back at Dimitri, eyes wide with wonder.  
  
" I'm not for sure," he said, glancing back at Morrigan as he did so, " but I think your girlfriend just went nuts."  
  
Dimitri stared at him for a minute, than sighed and said, " Why not. Tell me what happened."  
  
- See you guys later! Bye, and happy Valentine's Day! 


	22. Shattered Dreams

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY CHARACTERS THEREOF, AND AM RECEIVING NO PROFITS OFF THIS.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
* *- Indicates word emphasis, italics, etc.  
  
Hello, my poor, beleagured Darkstalkers fans. I haven't written in a while, since two new things- a BR one-shot and what is rapidly becoming a BR story- took up my time, but now I'm back to work on it.  
  
Kudos to all my fans, Galandria, Tiger5913, Johnathan Tailban, and all the rest of you. You guys are great.  
  
Can't believe I expected just twenty chapters!...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 22  
  
Shattered Dreams  
  
Small pond in Aensland territory, Makai. Night.  
  
A few hours had passed since the fight on the rocks. Since then, no one had gotten much sleep.  
  
After the battle, Dimitri had wanted to run to Morrigan's side, but the sun had prevented him from fulfilling that impulse. Jon stayed near the front of the cave and reported back to him what was happening.  
  
Morrigan had sat on the rocks after the fight, crying and mumbling incoherencies, and when Jon approached her she had lashed out, tentacles flying. The werewolf had jumped back just in time, and her whips only struck bare ground. Felicia tried to approach her, and Morrigan let her stand beside her, stroking the succubus' green hair and trying to talk some sense into her. Morrigan said nothing that could be understood, except a name that sounded like "Garrett", or maybe "Garik". Felicia couldn't quite make it out. After his abortive attempt, Jon simply stayed next to the cave. The werewolf was afraid that Morrigan would attack Felicia too, but said nothing, for fear of provoking the succubus. No one talked much, except Felicia, trying to reach Morrigan in whatever dark place she had retreated to.  
  
As Dimitri lay in his cave, in it's protecting darkness, he thought. And what his mind coldly suggested as the best way to deal with Morrigan somewhat shocked and scared him. In it, the thought held the echoes and overtones of the vampire who had raided the human village and enjoyed killing them all, who reveled in the gore.  
  
His mind had come up with only one solution. He had to leave Morrigan behind. She was insane now (or close to it; the details were unimportant at this point), and there was nothing Dimitri could do to help her. Best to leave her behind, kill Pyron, and return to what remained of the Aensland people. She would have been a bad ruler, anyway. Best to let her die here, and leave it at that.  
  
But...  
  
Could he do it? What was in him that could let him think such a thought, let alone plan to carry it out? What kind of monster was he?...   
  
There are times, in everyone's life, when we are forced to make a choice. Some get many choices, many times in their lives where who they are faces twin paths as to who it could be, but everyone gets at least one choice. It is an immutable fact of life, part of the test we all endure, and the single most important thing in life. Fate does not exist, save as a kind of celestial travel guide; it places us when and where we are. We, however, choose what to do from there.  
  
This was Dimitri's time and place, and this was his choice.  
  
As the sun set, he crawled out of his cave, and stood up, Ebonrule by his side. He looked over at Morrigan, who had finally fallen asleep in the past half hour. Her head lay on her arm, green hair forming a halo about it, her wings wrapped about her body like a shield, a position Dimitri was far too familiar with. Dimitri walked over to her, noticing without really seeing Felicia and Jon look at him. Jon rose up, said a greeting, mumbled something about watching her. He walked on, ignoring them. He had made his choice.  
  
He had originally planned to leave Morrigan here, but one thought had stopped him, a thought that made all of his former idea seem like the actions of a mean and spiteful child.  
  
[ If this one woman is too much trouble, than this entire world is as well. You have been given a mission to save this world, to heal it, and that includes every person on Makai. Morrigan is lost now, fallen into whatever darkness taints the farthest reaches of her mind, and you have to get her back. How can you judge her not worthy of being saved, of at least being given a chance? You cannot pick and choose, Dimitri! Do so, and the darkness in your soul will make a mockery of Pyron's evil. You do not do what is right because it is easier, Dimitri; you do it for the simple fact that it *is* right.]  
  
Dimitri walked over to her, not really having any idea what he was going to do ( wake her up and talk to her? Try to coax her from wherever she had fled?), when the Ebonrule began to glow. This was not, however, the azure flame it took on in the heat of battle; this glow was like water, rippling up and down the surface of the spear. Dimitri lifted it up before him, tip towards the sky, as he stood over Morrigan. The Ebonrule had a part to play in this, too; his conscious mind knew not what it was, but something inside him whispered what to do.   
  
Trusting to instinct, he gently placed the flat of the spear head on the top of Morrigan's head. The watery, shimmering glow flowed down, as if it really was the water it so cleverly mimicked, and it softly trickled down her face until it covered her sleeping eyelids.  
  
Darkness.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan's Mindscape. No time.  
  
Dimitri found himself rushing, rushing headfirst past memories and dreams and hopes and faces. He seemed to be in a tunnel of some sort, hurtling pell-mell down towards some great heart of darkness. The walls around him were red, the red of a freshly opened wound, pulsating as if they had a heartbeat all their own, and through them he glimpsed things- faces, voices, images of rooms, a bed covered in satin cloth...  
  
He looked up ( actually down, considering the way he was heading) and saw the mass of black before him, like some hellish cancer, pulsing in rhythm with the walls around him. The black thing reached out to him, a single tentacle pushing out of the membrane and lazily raising towards him. He prepared himself for impact, raising his right hand (the Ebonrule gone from it; it apparently hadn't traveled with him, wherever he now was)...  
  
Darkness.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan's Memory. No time.  
  
Dimitri opened his eyes and found himself floating in mid-air, the sensation dizzying him. He attempted to shake his head to clear it, and found that he could not move anything at all. Just as when he had witnessed his sins again, he could do nothing but watch whatever was going to happen here. From his vantage point, he could see a wide bed, covered in satin, the same one he'd glimpsed while falling through  
  
(dream and nightmare)  
  
wherever he had been. He wondered now where he  
  
(reality)  
  
was.  
  
If he had been in a physical form, he would have blinked in surprise. Where had those two errant thoughts come from? Dream and nightmare? Reality? What in the hell did that mean?  
  
His survey having been interrupted by the two phantom thoughts, he continued it while he waited for something to happen. The room was not what he'd call modest, but neither was it the bedroom of a king.  
  
The bed itself was a beautiful thing, the drapes and cloth purple. This was the room of a Duke, at the least; only royalty was allowed to use the color purple for any purpose whatsoever. Beside it, made from what Dimitri guessed was firm oak from the Wolf Kingdom, a handsome little dresser sat, it's handles made of bronze to compliment the varnish of the wood. A small oil lamp, presumably for late night reading, sat on it, wick void of flame for the moment.  
  
The wall to the right of both Dimitri and the bed was bare and contained nothing of interest except a door, closed at the moment. A few rays of light leaked under it, the only light in the room. Dimitri's sight, however, was perfect regardless of that fact. Considering everything else happening to him, that wasn't too strange.  
  
To his left, various paintings hung, none of which he recognized or seemed to be intended for any purpose other than soothing the eye of the beholder; landscapes, a sea picture, a well-done view of a quiet little village. Below them, a larger dresser than the one beside the bed sat, it's varnish and color indicating it was made of cherry, the favored wood for clothing dressers due to it's beneficial effect on keeping clothes smelling fresh longer.  
  
From his bird's eye view, Dimitri could even see what would have been behind him if he had been standing. A single dresser with a great, ornate mirror stood there, covering the far wall. Assorted jewelry and perfumes lined it's top, and more surely hid within it's drawers. This was a woman's bedroom, then, and a particularly tasteful one, too. He suddenly realized, rather belatedly, what he should have figured out when he first came here; this was Morrigan's bedroom, probably before Berial had managed to gain his position as head of the Inner Territories with some fancy political footwork, back when he was just a Duke.  
  
And, as if the thought was a summonings, the door opened and Morrigan walked in. The difference between this younger Morrigan and the Morrigan Dimitri knew threw such a sharp contrast that Dimitri thought his mind would explode from the force of it. Confusion blanketed his mind, wonder and realization all on the brink of birth in his mind. What was going on here?  
  
Morrigan's hair was tied back in a modest ponytail, not hanging freely as Dimitri had always known it to be. The wings on her head were slightly pulled in, as if shy of something. Her eyes, the eyes of a young girl and not an experienced tease, were demurely looking away from the bed, and to his surprise Dimitri saw she was on the verge of a blush. Her lips held a faint smile, the smile of a girl who is not entirely sure about what she is about to do, but knows she's supposed to enjoy it anyway. Her violet dress was extremely modest, covering the white tops of her breasts at the top and extending in a purple gown to cover her legs at the bottom. Her wings had been crossed over her shoulders and across her chest, making a sort of cape that Dimitri found quite attractive. Two diamonds sparkled in her earrings, and a single ring glistened on her hand. Her manner was odd, at once eager and restrained, wanting and holding back at the same time.  
  
The only thing Dimitri could recall that came even close to the way Morrigan was acting was the way he'd seen newlywed girls act, as his cousin had acted when she led her new husband off to their wedding bower. But as far as Dimitri knew, Morrigan had never been married. Or had she? He realized he knew very little about her past, and that no one he had ever met in the courts, not even the gossips who would rave about the most private parts of noble lives, had ever mentioned Morrigan's past. Her current exploits, yes, but nothing about her past. What lay there, buried in memory? Whatever it was, Dimitri believed it was the source of her current problem.  
  
In the few seconds it took Dimitri to take all this in, Morrigan turned and, in a voice as light as the wind, said, " I made it satin, just for you..." The almost-blush color in her cheeks deepened and blossomed into a full-fledged one, the exact opposite reaction of the woman Dimitri knew. This girl was nothing at all like the woman she would become.  
  
Then, he stepped in. Dimitri had no idea who he was, but his sight somehow sharpened on him, as if saying (by way of focus) that this man was the problem.  
  
The incubus was of average height and slim build, a somewhat girlish man whose close-cropped red hair would not have been inappropriate on a tomboy girl. His eyes were brown and feminine as well. His dress was apparently designed to make one think of all things fancified (or dandified, as Dimitri's people called it); a chain about his neck had several small rubies set into it, and his ears held more treasure in the form of fancified earrings. His vest was bright red, the red of spilled blood, and laced together with silk threads painted yellow, in an apparent attempt to mimic gold. His white gloves were immaculate, with small rings encircling his fingers. He was, in short, a fop.  
  
With a jolt of recognition, Dimitri remembered who it was. Garik Aleksia, a noble who had been sent off early in Berial's reign for reasons the old incubus had never fully specified. It had been in one of the first years of Dimitri's own reign, and he hadn't paid much attention to it- Inner Territories problem and all that. The only reason he remembered it at all was because of a rumor he'd heard once, a rumor his young mind had attached itself to for some reason. He'd forgotten it over the past century or so, but it sprang up again now.  
  
He had been walking through the halls of his keep, thinking about matters of the state (some treaty or another), when he'd heard talking through a closed door. He'd stopped to listen, for some reason feeling that this was important. Behind the door, his old advisor (who would be killed in five years, slain by a would-be ruler of the Vampires) and someone he didn't recognize were talking.  
  
" Are you sure?" his advisor had said.  
  
" Yes," came the reply. The stranger had a lighter voice than his advisor's gruff, deep tones, and he spoke with a slight accent Dimitri had never heard. Looking back, Dimitri thought that it must have been that strange accent Morrigan had gained in the tent when they'd met again, after Pyron's attack.  
  
" Tell me again," his advisor had said. He sounded tired, old. " By God, I hope that I misheard you, but I fear I have not."  
  
" No, sir," the messenger ( [Who else could it have been?] Dimitri thought, as below him, Morrigan led Garik over to the bed) replied. " You've understood me perfictly. But I'll say it again, for yer sake."  
  
He had heard tapping noises, then, the sound of boots on stone. He waited, hand reaching towards the door handle, then easing back, not ready to open it yet. He wanted to listen a while longer first.  
  
" About three days ago," the messenger had said, sighing, " the princess Morrigan ran to 'er father. The lass was in tears, cryin' her eyes out over some'in. Showed 'er father scars on 'er back, 'an a few bruises too. When 'is Highness asked 'er what had happuned, she told 'im about 'er fiance, a man named Garik Aleksia. Said e'd been strikin' 'er, makin' 'er do things... turrible things. His Highness flew into a rage, but Morrigan begged him not to kill Garik. Said she still loved 'im. So Berial 'as decided to send him away, to a faraway territory. Yer's."  
  
Dimitri had been slightly angry at this, mad that he had not been told of this, but kept his mouth shut and the door unopened. He wanted to hear the end of this conversation.  
  
" The bastard'll be arrivin' in about two days. No one from these parts 'as ever heard of 'is betrothal to Morrigan. News travels slow, thank God. We're askin' for ye to kill 'im, slow if you can, but quick if you have to. Ye have to do it before he tells anyone about the betrothal. News o' this sort is both embarassin' and damagin' to reputation, you know."  
  
Dimitri could not see anything, but assumed that his advisor had nodded. He had not been a man of many words, his old advisor, and never spoke when a nod or head shake could suffice.  
  
" So tha's the gist of it. 'E's 'urt the princess some'in turrible. We want justice done, but Morrigan won't let's do it back home. Says she still loves 'im. Poor lass."   
  
" I'll see to it personally," his advisor had said.  
  
" Thank ye, sir," the messenger had said, his message out. " We owe ye a great deal."  
  
" It matters not," his advisor had said, and Dimitri could picture in his mind the old man waving his hand before him, " because something like this transcends matters of rank or debt. This man deserves death. It is nothing more or less than what I would do for even the lowliest peasant."  
  
" Ye are truly a good man," the messenger had said, probably bowing as he did so, " The rumors 'bout ye are true. I've heard ye're a great man, but I did no' believe till today. Forgive me."  
  
" It is nothing," his advisor had said magnaminously. Footsteps, then a door opening. They'd left through a different door.  
  
Dimitri had pondered it for weeks, but had never asked his advisor about it. It hadn't seemed important, and knowing something in secret was strangely fun. He'd bothered to do research and eventually come up with a portrait of the man, which was how he'd recognized him when he'd entered. Eventually, however, he'd simply forgotten all about it, in the middle of a bad period in his reign where it seemed that every idiot with dreams of power had decided on his throne as the target.  
  
Hearing a light giggle, his attention snapped back to what was happening at the moment in the bedroom below him.  
  
His spiritual eyes had not closed, but lost in his thoughts, he hadn't paid attention to what was happening. Down below him, Morrigan and Garik had reached the bed and sat down on it, and begun what was obviously foreplay. They kissed and stroked, Morrigan attempting to take off the ridiculous clothes Garik wore, he merely pushing the shoulders of her dress down...  
  
Without warning, he shoved her. She fell back against the headboard, eyes wide with shock and fear. Garik reached out a hand and cupped her face. The wings on her head had shrunk back, fear touching them as well. A smile that immediately sickened Dimitri came over his face, as he stroked her cheek. Morrigan only whimpered slightly, too shocked and afraid to move.  
  
" I always wanted to do a princess," Garik said, his tone lazy and thick, the sound of rolling waves sickened by algae smashing into a beach and slurping backwards into the ocean, " you especially."  
  
Morrigan stared at him, her young and naive perception of the world (a trait that had made her very popular in the deceptive, thieving courts of Aensland Castle) cracking and shattering, splintering under this brutal assault.  
  
" So young," Garik whispered, Dimitri's stomach rolling as he heard the sickening depravity in the incubus' voice, " so pure... so easy to trick."  
  
Garik's left hand shot up and ripped off part of Morrigan's dress, exposing one creamy white breast, complete with dark nipple. Morrigan quivered and shook.  
  
" And you'll tell no one, understand?" Garik whispered to her as he groped her, resembling nothing more than some monstrous beast enjoying itself on helpless prey.  
  
Morrigan whimpered, and Garik laughed, while above them, in perfect omniscience and weakness, Dimitri raged and fumed, understanding blossoming in his mind. It was all becoming clear now. Morrigan's comments on liars. Her inner weakness. Her pain.  
  
Darkness.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan's Mindscape. No time.  
  
Light came back to Dimitri, and he found himself standing on a rock. Not just any rock, though; this one resembled a hand. Dimitri was standing on the middle finger, on the edge of the strange promontory. Hearing the crash of waves (oddly sounding like Garik's voice) he looked around, glad he could move his head.  
  
All about him, he saw water, water as far as the eye could see. Water that was blood red, as red as Garik's vest had been. It splashed against the hand of rock, making the monstrous noise he'd first heard in Garik's voice. The noise pounded his ears and mind, and he wished he could shut it out. That wish, unfortunately, was not to be granted. Above him, in a cloudy sky of dark red, clouds floated, clouds that were long and straight and seemingly worn out, at the end of their tenuous hold on life. He gazed before him.  
  
In the palm of the hand, knees curled up and hands held before them, her green hair covering her face as she stared at the ground, wings wrapped about her as a pathetic shield against her pain, Morrigan wept, her form small in the suddenly gigantic hand, shuddering with the force of her sobs. She wore a rent and torn dress that, in the strange colors of this world, seemed old and dusty and ruined, something fallen.  
  
Dimitri walked down the hand, towards her. She didn't even look up as he reached the end of the finger. He called out to her.  
  
" Morrigan."  
  
- CLIFFHANGER! Again, Silverlocke980 pulls a quick one over on his fans! See you next chapter. 


	23. Shining in the Dark

Hey people. I've rather avoided doing this, as I seem to do on all hard chapters of this fanfic. With the others I bull on ahead, but this... this one requires some delicate handling. Mostly because it's very hard to get the characters right. Even Jon, who artistically is the least complex of the darkstalkers to write, is far more complex than my usual characters.  
  
A big shout-out to reviewers. Hope last chapter explained part of Morrigan's problems to you.  
  
Well, I won't babble on. It's...  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 23  
  
Shining in the Dark  
  
Morrigan's Mindscape. No time.  
  
Morrigan's sobs slowed after Dimitri called to her, and finally they stopped. She looked up at him, eyes wet with tears, hair bestraggled, dress in shambles. Her body should have given the impression of something fallen, something wrong, but to Dimitri, she merely gave off an impression of great pain. Of misuse, of a life gone wrong. She looked at him as frightened animals will look at their captors, wary of blows and helpless before them.  
  
Dimitri walked forward, stepping down from the finger of this giant stone hand and walking to her. But as he walked forward, he felt something in front of him. Then, he had the strangest sensation of being *pushed*- of being thrown back. Only keeping his feet with an effort, he tried to walk forward. The force on him grew stronger, became a stone wall, a great fist. He pushed against it anyway, cursing the unknown force in his way futilely. As he continued pushing, he heard chuckling behind him, a laughter he'd never heard before. He whipped around, already moving into a fighting position. Behind him, smiling monstrously, Garik Aleksia stood, wreathed in flame. At the sight of her tormentor, Morrigan let out a small cry and hugged her knees to her tighter, wrapping her wings about herself more. Garik took no notice of her, simply looked at Dimitri and laughed.  
  
" You! What the hell are you doing here?" Dimitri said, settling into the combat pose he'd been taught. " You're dead!"  
  
" Dead," Garik said, chuckling, " but not forgotten. Never forgotten, and so, in this pitiful excuse for a reality that Morrigan calls her mind, I live." The figure waved his arm, indicating the bleak stretches of waves around them. " Rather proves the old saying that we live on forever in memory..."  
  
Dimitri bared his fangs in an age-old gesture of hatred. " Then I end your life right here. I will not let you hurt Morrigan anymore."  
  
" Like you can stop me." Garik rolled his eyes at Dimitri, another age-old gesture.  
  
" I can try," Dimitri said, running forward, cocking his fist back to strike at this monster that had plagued the woman he loved for so long.  
  
The wave of force that hit him picked him up like a rag doll and threw him across the stone hand. He hit with such force that had he been in his physical body, he would have broken all of his bones upon impact. As it was, in his new spiritual form, he merely felt such agony as he had never known. He lay where he was, gasping and panting.  
  
" And now what will you do?" Garik said, almost conversationally, as if this were a topic for discussion over tea. " You can't best me. Why bother fighting? There's no point, no gain."  
  
" Because it's right," Dimitri said, struggling to stand, weariness shaking him and wracking his body. " I will fight you because it is right. No matter what the cost."  
  
" What, has your high and vaunted honor," Garik spoke this last word with disgust and contempt ringing in his voice, now surprisingly clear, sexual lust no longer thickening it, " demanded such a thing of you? Has your great honor," and now Garik's voice picked up, as if anger was twisting it, " become so important? Why bother? There's no gain in it. Your honor will kill you."  
  
" And what of that?" Dimitri asked, his voice gasping with pain, each breath shuddering agony as he put his hands on his knees and struggled to stay up, " So what if honor kills me? Everyone dies. But not everyone truly lives. If, to live, I must die... what does that mean, when measured against that great scale, on which we must all stand and be judged, when all that's right is upheld? If all life mounts to is making a stand when the rain comes pouring down..." Here he stopped, realizing that he was saying something important here, something key, something that went beyond all the trappings of this situation and was true everywhere. Then, slower, he continued on. " If that is the sum and measure of a man, than I will not fail. I love Morrigan. I am a mortal, and the definition of a mortal is weakness. All we do is marred by weakness. I have failed, many a time, when I could have done better. I have failed Morrigan many times recently, when it seemed I did not care, never noticed. Never saw her pain and suffering. And for that, I am sorry." Dimitri looked at Morrigan, small tears pricking the corners of his eyes. God, yes. He had failed her. And it looked like he was about to fail one last time. " But, here, I've been given a chance to try one last time. To try and stand, where before I fell. And I will try." Standing up on shaky legs, supporting himself only through sheer force of will, he said, " Even if it kills me."  
  
" We'll see," Garik said flatly. And for Dimitri, the torment began.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Morrigan's Thoughts. No time.  
  
Morrigan, in her pain, watched as Dimitri was battered by blow after blow, as fire and wind and crackling thunder struck him again and again, as his standing form jerked with each blow. She felt no emotion, just a sort of numbed cold. Her thoughts slowly turned inward, towards the speech he had made, before this seemingly endless torment began. What kind of speech was that? She had never heard it's like before, save in poetry or writing. And yet... It had come from the mouth of a man, a man she knew and liked. Not loved... such an emotion didn't exist.  
  
Or did it? The vampire even now being torn apart seemed an expression of purest love, of honor, of higher things. That he would stand against someone so much more powerful than him... why? Was his sexual need for her so great that he could not comprehend life without her? Was that it?  
  
Before her, slowly falling, bleeding horribly, Dimitri fell. Garik did not laugh, smile, or do anything at all to show his triumph, merely watched dispassionately as Dimitri fell. Morrigan crawled over to him, some semblance of emotion returning to her as she saw Dimitri's face. It was torn and gashed, great wounds covering his scalp. Already his eyes were fading, the light in them dying.  
  
As she crawled over to him, placing her right hand on his hurt face, he said in a voice already half-dead, " Morrigan."  
  
She looked at him, wondering what he could possibly say at this point. What anyone could say, given time and world enough.  
  
" I'm... sorry," he choked out, breath puffing the small particles of dust that overlay this great stone hand. " So... sorry. Couldn't... fight him."  
  
" You can still escape, you know," Garik said impassionately, gazing down at Dimitri with a look of utmost superiority. " I left the door open. Simply will it so. Escape to your physical form. It's alive and well. You'll be safe there."  
  
Morrigan waited, her hand on Dimitri's head, waiting for him to disappear. There was no point in continued fighting. To encourage him to leave, she said, " It's allright, Dimitri. You'll find another lover."  
  
" No," Dimitri said, and to her surprise his arm moved slowly, feebly, as if to raise himself up again. " I... won't leave your... side. I must... keep trying to...!" Here he drew in a deep pained breath, as part of him shut down and fell apart. Mastering himself with a visible effort, he choked out, " Must keep trying to... help you. No matter... what."  
  
" Dimitri," Morrigan said, and it pierced her heart and supposed great knowledge that maybe, just maybe, the things in life she'd only dreamed about in private (and mocked in public) were real, that maybe there were such things as hope and love and truth and honor... that maybe not everyone fell to the rain.  
  
Above her, Garik's mouth twisted in rage. " Die!" he shouted, a great force rippling out from him, a blow intended to finish Dimitri once and for all. Dimitri gathered his paltry will, to try one last time.  
  
Morrigan screamed, and in that scream was all the defiance of one raging at Fate itself.  
  
Darkness. Total and complete. Dimitri could not see his hand before his battered face. He turned, looking. Seeking.  
  
" You cannot be rid of me, Morrigan!" Garik's voice, roaring out of the darkness. " I am you! I am the hate and the pain and the fear and the loss... I am the all and the nothing!"  
  
" You are wrong!" Morrigan shouted, and her voice suddenly seemed to grow, to strengthen. " You did represent me. For a long time, you were me. But now..." Dimitri felt her mind turn to him, and the strength in it- strength born of madness- shocked him. Here, in the darkness of her own mind, Morrigan's strength was beyond reasoning. That great force turned from him, and he heard her voice again, in the darkness. " I will believe. If nothing else, Dimitri gave me that."  
  
" Believe in what?" Garik's voice, shrieking through the dark. " Belief is for weaklings and fools!"  
  
" Wrong!" Dimitri shouted, surprised he could even speak in this place. " Belief is for the pure and the true. Belief is all there is in this world." Miraculously, blessedly, the pain he had been feeling was lessening, falling from him like dead skin. Or maybe it was more like raindrops that could no longer touch his skin. " Belief, in God, in what is right, in the good in this world... it's all that has ever sustained me, even in those dark times when I thought everything had fallen through. And now, in the dark, I will continue to believe, to hold on."  
  
" And I choose to believe now," Morrigan said, and Dimitri felt some great force gathering, a force of great and infinite strength, matched in that power only by the kindness behind it, the justness of it. " Not in denial of what has happened to me, but because of it. You made me fear."  
  
The force gathered, and the dark brightened, on some great and indeterminately far horizon, brightened into a white beyond all understanding, as Morrigan finished the last words the mind-Garik would ever hear.  
  
" You made me fear... fear to believe. But I will fear no longer!"  
  
The white came, and Dimitri and Morrigan were awash in it. He saw Garik, one last time, and for one shattered moment he thought that Garik's face had changed, shifted into Morrigan's face, became for a moment what it really was- because in that light, no lie could ever hold- the fragments and pieces of Morrigan's own pain, given reality in her madness.  
  
And then...  
  
Darkness.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Small pond in Aensland territory. Twenty-five seconds after Dimitri touched Morrigan.  
  
Jon and Felicia had stood still, watching Dimitri. It seemed that he had just touched Ebonrule to Morrigan's forehead when her eyes opened, not slowly as if waking, but with a snap, the eyes of someone who has just taken a terrifying plunge and survived. Her breathing, for the last few seconds slow and rhythmic, suddenly changed into the fierce, gasping breath of someone who has just been running. Dimitri, standing calmly until now, suddenly snapped too as well, breathing just as hard as Morrigan. He slumped backwards, not so much sitting as falling, dropping Ebonrule as he fell. The spear's blue light faded as it withdrew from Morrigan's eyes and dropped harmlessly to the ground. Dimitri let out a sigh, then a cynical grin covered his face. Morrigan looked up at him, her eyes wet with unshed tears.  
  
" Morrigan," Dimitri said, starting to laugh and chuckle, " holy shit. I never want to do that again."  
  
" Dimitri," she said, half-needingly. She had done it; Garik was gone in her mind, wiped away by that great force. But she had not done that. Great as her power had been in her own mind, it had been no more to the force that had come than an amoeba to a whale. What had happened there, in her mind? What had happened, to cause that great shining in the darkness?  
  
Looking over at Felicia, protectively clutching a small crucifix she'd gotten out of one of her pockets, she thought that maybe she knew. She shook her head, from where she lay on the ground. Time enough for that later. She was free now, and her madness was gone from her like a rent cloak. She looked at Dimitri.  
  
" Dimitri," she said again. He sat up, marveling that his body did not ache or bleed in the million places Garik had torn at it, and grabbed her in a fierce hug. She returned it, glad to have his strength and warmth to cling to.  
  
" I almost lost you," he said, and those simple words, said many times in many languages, summed up everything for both of them.  
  
They held each other. And in the dark of a Makai night, a little light was found.  
  
-See you guys later. Review please! 


	24. Beginning of Ends

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DARKSTALKERS OR ANY TRADEMARKS THEREOF.  
  
[]- Indicates thought.  
  
* *- Indicates italics/emphasis/telepathy (hey, you never know when you need an asterik).  
  
And yet again, Silverlocke980 leaves his fans in the cold... I'm sorry people. This story is getting harder and harder to write. I didn't have a really good idea before I started writing it, and as I go on I want to go back... to fix what I've screwed up... to remake the world with the knowledge I have gained hence. I started this on the basis of one image- Dimitri pulling the Ebonrule out of a picture frame. That's it. In reality, the most solid thing in my story is the Ebonrule... a spear of redemption that strikes a chord in my heart. I find the very idea beautiful. So I've written this story mostly to explain and venerate this center object. Though I have gotten some useful writing experience from it...  
  
The main problem with doing such a thing in a story is coherency issues. I've been flipping through my works, and many of them lack basic coherency, though in a chapter situation like this, that doesn't matter so much. Still, it would be better if my works completely fit together, and there weren't any puzzle pieces by the sidelines...  
  
This is a screwed up jigsaw puzzle, but it paints something of a picture. So, I'll quit jawing.  
  
Big shout out to my reviewers! Galandria, Tiger5913 (one note to you: No Ryu glomping!), Johnathan Tailban, and all my other fans. Thank you all for reviewing my stuff.  
  
And now....  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 24  
  
Beginning of Ends  
  
Plains of Aensland Territory. Night.  
  
The four trudged on, getting closer and closer to the rocky shore that marks Makai's eastern boundary, to the land of the Mermen, the Sasquatch, and various Incubi tribes. The plains slowly gave way to rocky, almost desert-like land, though it wasn't a desert- Makai is a planet strangely blessed in that regard, posessing no deserts of either sand or ice- but what we would call "steppes". This place, called Shadowbare by the Incubi of Aensland, marked the end of Aensland territory. The four had finally crossed the endless plains and reached the start of the eastern coastline.  
  
As the group walked on, they eventually came to a small rocky place. Several of these rocks made good seats, and the party took advantage of this natural formation to take a breather.  
  
" So," Dimitri said, as they sat down, " where are we headed now? Can you sniff it out, Jon?"  
  
" I'm trying," the werewolf replied. Stepping out from his friend aways, Jon lifted his nose and took a few deep breaths of the upper air. Letting out a loud snort, he returned to the little circle of rocks.  
  
" Well," he said, absently scratching his right ear, " it's faint, but I smell their trail. We're close to it; maybe a little too far north or south, but definitely close."  
  
" Good," Dimitri said, then sighed. " We'll catch up to them soon. And then it will be over."  
  
Nobody stated what this implied: that death was the end of this quest. They all sat silent for a moment, then Felicia said, " What are we going to do when we get there? Any ideas?"  
  
Dimitri shrugged. " Try to sneak into Pyron's tent or whatever the demon's using, stab him to death with Ebonrule, try to sneak out."  
  
Again, nobody mentioned how hopelessly optimistic that statement was.  
  
" What will the camp look like?" Jon said, scratching his ear with more gusto as his nervousness increased; the air about the small campsite was moody tonight. " I've never seen their warriors, but you've described them as being made of metal and claws. What kind of homes will such creatures use, if they use anything at all?"  
  
" They're human," Dimitri said, casting his memory back to the day his castle was destroyed. " The metal is some form of body armor, I'm sure of it. Inside, they are human. They will need tents, they will need food, and they will need water. This area has very few places where an army can get all the water they'll need. Even if your nose can't direct us to their exact location, we should be able to follow a stream and reach them at a major river."  
  
" I could fly," Morrigan broke in. " Try t' scout their location frum the heights."  
  
Felicia looked at Morrigan. " Did you just gain an accent?"  
  
Morrigan smiled self-consciously. " Well, I'v always had one... I just never allowed meself to use 't. Weren't considered proper at th' castle." Brushing her hair back over her right ear with one hand, she said, " I guess I just wanted t' be me true self for a while." She glanced at Dimitri, and a small smile flitted across her face. " Besides, it's not like it'll matter. I just got tired o' keeping me accent down."  
  
Felicia nodded. " I think it's kind of cute."  
  
Morrigan smiled and looked away. " Thanks. But let's get back to the main question, shall we? Should I fly up, or stay here on th' ground?"  
  
Dimitri thought for a moment, then said, " Maybe later on. We're still too far from them for an aerial viewpoint to give us anything new to go on. Once we've reached the eastern coasts, or a big river, that might change, but for now, stay on the ground."  
  
Morrigan nodded. " Yeah, I thought that too," she said.  
  
Jon shook himself and rose up. " Well, let's get going then," he said, turning to sniff the air. " Don't want to lose the scent before the prey is in sight."  
  
Dimitri arose as well. Morrigan stood and walked to Dimitri, putting her head on his shoulder and wrapping him in her arms as she did so.  
  
" Don' leave me," she whispered to him.  
  
" Morrigan, I can't...." Dimitri said, wanting to say he wouldn't and knowing he could not lie, not to her, not to this one who had suffered so much from lie.  
  
" I'm not asking ye," Morrigan said, and Dimitri thought he felt her smile against his skin, a bittersweet smile of sadness, " I'm telling ye. Don' leave me."  
  
" I'll try," Dimitri said, wrapping his free arm about her. " I'll try."  
  
They held for a moment, and when they slipped out of their embrace, turned to follow their friends, who had respectfully went a few yards away, out of sight.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
Pyron's Encampment, Eastern Shore of Makai. Same time.  
  
Pyron held his head in his right hand. Try as he might, he could not completely heal the damage the vampire had done. Everytime he healed it, it broke open again. When had he received this wound? It had been some time ago... weeks? Months? Time did not matter to a being like Pyron, born of nothing, damned to die and return to nothing.  
  
Time was merely an annoying constraint.  
  
A single knock, tentative and weak, rang out in the darkness of Pyron's room. He looked up, his eyes flaming essences of fire. The fire flickered for a second.  
  
A door opened, in the room, a tall white portal of light. And yet the light didn't penetrate the room. In fact, the light seemed to recoil from it, as if finding the darkness of the room too abhorrent to pierce. As if afraid of what that darkness hid.  
  
" Lord?" A human soldier called from that door. Pyron looked at the shadow, all he could see of the man. " we're ready to move out, as you ordered."  
  
" Good. Move south, following the river. I shall meet you where we will rest for the night."  
  
" Lord." The soldier bowed deeply before Pyron, in a worshipful way, and part of Pyron rejoiced at that... as it had rejoiced at all who called it master. A false god...  
  
Pyron wondered how long it would be before they started worshipping him. Sacrificing their women and children to him.  
  
Before they began to slaughter in his name.  
  
Pyron smiled in the darkness. His former bad mood was completely replaced by dark contentment.  
  
One goal down, two to go.  
  
Now if only that pesky vampire and his enchanted spear would just go away...  
  
Pyron didn't notice until later that his face had split open again where the Ebonrule had struck him.  
  
************************************************************************  
  
The Eastern Steppes of Makai. One hour later.  
  
The party trudged on, walking through broken and tumbled land that would have made the most determined of travelers turn back to home in search of easier roads. Despite the harsh look of the land, Dimitri was cheered up simply knowing they were off the plains. The vampires had never, ever traveled very far in Makai, mostly staying in the cave-infested hills of their Outer Territory. It was one reason that vampires were somewhat mysterious even to their neighbors and allies in surrounding territories. Most races of Makai preferred the night, but what kind of creature had no choice in the matter? Humans thought they were demons (which struck Dimitri as ironically funny; vampires had saved everyone, more the act of an angel than a demon, and yet the humans hated them), while other races merely regarded them as strange and best left alone. Which suited vampires fine. They owned a small territory in the Darkstalker society, so being left alone was probably healthier in the long run for them. When no one notices you, no one kills you. Or tries to take your land. Or rape your women. Or a million other worse things.  
  
Dimitri briefly wondered how the vampires of other worlds were doing. His mind, educated in a way not like that of a noble in our Middle Ages, readily accepted other worlds. It stated in the Bible that God had made one world; it never said that he hadn't created more. Dimitri had no idea how to reach other worlds, but he was perfectly able to believe in them.  
  
[ Are they better off?] Dimitri wondered. [ Are they revered, venerated as the heroes they are? Or, are they like us, a minority, struggling to survive? Small and cast out into darkness...]  
  
Dimitri mused quietly for a few seconds, then other thoughts entered his mind.  
  
[ What are other worlds like?] Dimitri wondered. [ What are the people on them like? Do they dream like we do, hope as we hope, love and care for each other as we should? Are they hating creatures? Creatures of shame? Honor? Madness? What are they like?]  
  
They say that the good are given few gifts in this world. Yet Dimitri was given one then. For a moment, Dimitri was allowed to *see*. In the blink of an eye, he saw other worlds. It was a stark image, one that burned his mind, that seared his very soul with it's imprint. He never had a moment like that again, but once was enough. It was sudden, quick, all consuming, like lightning that strikes on some fantastic and alien landscape and reveals all for a few precious seconds.  
  
He saw a world riddled with tunnels, full of darkness dispelled by no sunlight. He saw three people, one carrying a sword and pained look on his face, a second holding a small staff while red wings emitted black specks of dust, the last carrying a weapon Dimitri had never seen before, a brown tail trailing behind her. They were running from a group of men, who wore strange headgear that made their eyes glow. Some were carrying the same strange weapon the woman was, and they pointed them at the runners. Fire flared from their barrels, and little zips of metal hit the ground behind the trio. The woman turned and struck back, still running, her gun lighting up the darkness. One of the pursuers fell, his throat torn by some unseen force.  
  
Another world. Here the sun had set on a great city of glass and steel, a city full of strange moving creatures and noise... wheeled monsters piled on black roads, screeching at each other in honking voices unlike anything Dimitri had ever heard. A strange, airy thing of some clear material (glass? or something else?) spanned part of the great black road. A young man was walking through it, along with a crowd, and he turned and looked at Dimitri, as if seeing him somehow. He had two scars crossing his face between the eyes, and as the human looked at him, Dimitri saw the sudden imprint of a wolf's face over the man's.  
  
Rushing. Another world. Where a man with body torn and heart bleeding fought on a sunlit battlefield, as the wind blew long grass in waves after waves, as the man's long blond hair blew in the breeze. The man wore no shirt, and Dimitri saw that his right arm was not human, but monstrous. Red eyes blinked and covered the man's right chest, and his hand was a claw. Yet, despite this, Dimitri felt sadness and honor radiate outwards from this man... as he fought and fought, against nigh impossible odds, to save a woman with purple hair who lay at his feet, unconscious, ignorant of the battle the mutated man was waging with strange warriors whose bodies seemed to blink in the sunlight.  
  
Dimitri shook his head, and the images vanished.  
  
" Dimitri?" Morrigan said. " Are you alright?"  
  
" Fine," Dimitri said slowly, as if he'd just awakened from a dream.  
  
[ And in a way, I have, haven't I?] he thought, then smiled. He looked up into the sky and laughed aloud.  
  
" There isn't much given to the good in this world," Dimitri said, stunning his companions, "but what little we are given means everything." Still smiling and chuckling, Dimitri hoisted his spear to his shoulder. " Let's get going. I've seen the heroes of other worlds; it's time to make one for my own."  
  
Walking in front of his dumbstruck companions, Dimitri's laughter rang out in the steppes like the ringing of clear, silver bells.  
  
-There you go, people. Guess who the cameos are from... (ducks as Tiger flies out of nowhere to glomp Ryu) 


	25. And If I Should Fall

Hey everybody. It's the silver-haired one again! (Music in back) I know you guys are wanting to kill me by now (sorry guys!) but as I said before, I have an inordinate amount of trouble when it comes to dealing with this story. But, never fear! The DS story is almost through. In fact, I expect this to be the second to last chapter....  
  
The cameos were, in order, a scene from Breath of Fire V: Dragon Quarter where Ryu, Nina, and Lin were getting chased by Ranger Lieutenants; a scene from the Bloody Roar series with Yugo Ohgami, passing through the glass walkway in the hospital where Kenji and Uriko are currently talking; and the last cameo was from Soul Calibur 2, with Siegfried in half-demon form fighting an army of Fygul Cestemus assassins. The woman at his feet is Isabella Valentine, better known to fans as Ivy, unconscious from a former wound. Tiger got the middle cameo right, but no one else got them... guess it proves what an oddball I am. (cries) For those who have played these games and are wondering what I'm talking about, don't worry; these are either from my stories and/or the dark recesses of my mind, not the games themselves. Kudos to Tiger for one right guess!  
  
Kudos to all my reviewers. You guys are great.  
  
So. Here we go, my friends. Second to last....  
  
"SHOWTIME!"  
  
Chapter 25  
  
And If I Should Fall  
  
Outside Pyron's Encampment. Early Makai night. Three days after journey across Shadowbare.  
  
Dimitri looked to his three companions and knew that if something had to be said, it had to be said now. There was no telling what might happen once the four of them were inside, and it was best to say all one had to say. The vampires, unlike many other races of Makai (Felinos and Incubi especially), had never had many sayings or legends, but they did have one about not saying all you wanted. The legend said that if one died without telling something that had to be said, even though one had been given a chance to say it, the spirit would live on in eternal torment until they finally did tell what they had to.... or the Judgement Day came. Whichever happened first.  
  
Since Dimitri didn't want to wait that long, he started first.  
  
" Everyone," he said, and his three friends looked at him, standing in a rough half-circle with Morrigan at the far end, Felicia to his left, and Jon right in the middle, " this is it. Whatever happens in the next few minutes will decide whether all Makai lives or dies. I'll be honest. I don't think we have much of a chance. But there is still that chance. And you know what? I think that's all that's ever mattered. Evil outnumbers Good, far surpasses it. There are more evil people in this world than we can imagine. And I'm not just talking about big evils, like Pyron and his servants; I'm talking about little evils. Every power-hungry senator who ever walked this land. Every man who ever struck his children or hurt his wife. Every woman who willingly let men into her bed when her husband was gone. Every single weak, mindless, pointless evil in this world. There is so much evil..."  
  
Dimitri raised his head, and above him, the stars that all souls, regardless of race, have always dreamed on shone forever and ever, all in darkness, but still giving light. Dimitri closed his eyes, and somewhere far away, he heard the sound of rain receding. " But that doesn't matter. Because one good man is worth all the evil ones in the world. Because even the weakest light can penetrate the deepest darkness. Because.... Good is a harder path. Because we take that harder path, we are stronger. And God designed it that way, I think. He made it so that Good was the harder path to take. Because if, despite the harshness of the terrain, we still walk that road.... isn't that worth something? Doesn't it mean that we are more than other people? That our love of God and Good overwhelms everything else? Isn't that what it means?..."  
  
He opened his eyes and looked at them. " We are here against all the evil that has ever existed in this world or any other. But that means nothing. Because on our side we have the sadness of our tears, tears we have shed because we have walked the better path. Our cries on the road of the true will far outweigh the childish, mocking laughter evil lets out on the path of the weak. They take a false path. We take a strong one. Maybe that's the real difference between Good and Evil. We can cry tears, tears of beauty.... they can only laugh."  
  
Closing his eyes and drawing in one deep breath, Dimitri said, " If any of you have anything to say to each other, say it now. And let nothing be thought of as being understood without words, lest you find too late that nothing was understood."  
  
Felicia turned to Jon, and said, " I don't want that happening."  
  
Jon, smiling a bittersweet smile, said, " I know. I love you too, Felicia."  
  
" Jon," she said, and wrapped herself around him. A few small tears rolled out of both their eyes. " I love you so much..."  
  
Morrigan looked at them for a moment, caught in their embrace, and then turned her head to Dimitri. Her eyes said everything, but her lips still formed the words.  
  
" I love ye," she said simply.  
  
" And I you," Dimitri said.  
  
They embraced.  
  
Some small, eternal moments later, both couples let go, and turned as one towards Pyron's camp. And they plunged into darkness with courage.  
  
A listener standing there could have heard, somewhere far away, the sound of beautiful teardrops striking the pristine surface of a pure lake. Each made but a few ripples, then the lake was clear.

Pyron's Tent. Same time.  
  
Pyron jerked his head up, feeling something come into his camp. Some force, some being, was walking in on eight legs, with four heads, four hearts, but one soul. And that force was anathema to his being, water to his flame, light to his darkness. He raised himself up to call to his guards-  
  
Then the surface of his body rippled like water being struck by stones, and he knew no more until Dimitri burst open his door and flooded azure light into the room.  
  
Pyron's Encampment. Same time.  
  
Dimitri and his friends had made an unspoken agreement, in those last few seconds before they entered the camp- there was no way they could avoid a fight. They could sneak in and be caught, or they could walk in and begin battle. And which was the better path? Which way would serve them best?  
  
Or, to take a different route- which path was harder?  
  
Dimitri was at their front. He raised the Ebonrule, and it's flame shone brighter than bright, blue on black, and the force of it was such that the red flames of the torches and fires in the camp shrunk back before it. It's surface ran with watery power, and the entire spear seemed to shake. Dimitri's eyes blazed with fervor, with the fire that possesses those men who are bound to do justice and no more or less.  
  
The first group of guards took one look at him and ran. They left behind their armor, their weapons, and everything they had robbed or pillaged from nearby camps. They fled into the night, unable to stand before such an onslaught.  
  
Though most guards followed their pattern, a single group withstood them. This group was composed of lunatics and Pyron worshipers. Confident in their madness (both mental and religious), they suited up into their robotic armor suits and went to war. The first one was a screaming, raving madman who raised up his armored claw and took a swing at Dimitri. Soon he was a screaming, shrieking madman minus one hand. Dimitri blew in the faceplate of his armored suit with Ebonrule's pointed edge. The other robots soon followed suit, torn apart by Jon's teeth, Felicia's claws, and Morrigan's tentacles. No one else bothered to oppose them.  
  
As Dimitri walked through the camp, he noticed the huge numbers of small women and children gathered as slaves- and with a jolt of insight and disgust so sharp it was almost painful, he saw that they were all female. The men of Pyron's army had been using them for pets and concubines. A black rage so filled Dimitri that his vision clouded over, and for a moment or two he saw nothing but utter destruction all around him. Without meaning to, he activated his psi, and the men running from him and his friends burst into flames. Dimitri didn't notice. Nor did he care. He looked back at his friends, and from the looks on their faces he saw that they, too, had noticed the women all about. Without saying a word, they broke the chains open (Morrigan was particularly vicious in her destruction, shattering chain after chain with her lashing tentacles). Soon they were free, and running north. Why north? Maybe because the men of the camp were all running south, in an unconscious, general fashion. Maybe because north lay Jedah's ragtag army, and some kind of safety. Though one must wonder- how did they know that? Maybe they didn't have to. Maybe someone else knew for them. Maybe someone was guiding them- a someone who could not act directly, but now could guide them.  
  
Dimitri and his friends stomped through the camp, leaving a path of utter destruction in their wake. Enemies and slaves flew before them, each heading their own way, and before long the group was standing before the awesome structure that dominated the camp. It hadn't seemed to even exist, moments ago... and then suddenly, it rose up, dwarfing and mocking the camp. It was as dark as a starless, moonless night, black as the soul of the demon inside and imposing as hell. It cut a black swath across the night sky, and the designs on it (which seemed random at first, but on second glance were revealed as scenes from the darkest pits of Hell) seemed to glow with their own inner light. Dimitri gazed up it's length, and then broke out laughing. It was a mocking, sniggering, cheerful laughter that seemed to make the entire structure shiver.  
  
" I know I said that Good cries while Evil laughs," he said, still chuckling, still grinning, fangs shining in the now-weak firelight of the fast-emptying camp. " But sometimes Good laughs. It laughs when it sees Evil trying to be impressive. Look at all this!" he said, sweeping his hand back, indicating the camp all around them. " It's nothing! We are four against many. There might have been thousands of warriors here. Yet they all fled before us. Their shiny toys and fancy tents have come to mean nothing now! This place is nothing. Evil is nothing. And that's why Evil has all these things and glorifies it's looks- it has to terrify you, it has to impress you. Because if it can't, you might look past the make-up and see how little it really means." Still chuckling, Dimitri put his hand on the cold stone of the castle. He felt some other will strike at him, try to make the stone dark and frightful, to call up images in his mind of nightmares and dreams past.... but he shoved them all away and focused his will. " You might see how weak it truly is."  
  
With one shove Dimitri shattered the illusion of the castle. And it did not fade away, or break apart and disappear in the wind- it just went, as though it never were. And inside that grand illusion, a very small and very plain black box could be seen. Inside, lying dazed on the floor, was Pyron- although the friends could not see that, for the box's only entrance was closed- and their goal. Dimitri stepped forward and placed his hand on the entrance. He looked to his friends, and they nodded. Dimitri seemed to glow with an inner fire, with something in him that could not be stopped. He was like a guided missile that had finally found, after many days of wandering, it's target, and was preparing to deliver one final blow.  
  
Dimitri broke down the door.Pyron's Room. Same time.  
  
Pyron woke up at the same time that Dimitri burst into the room. The strange, disjointed feeling in his body, a feeling that had come from nowhere, came back just as suddenly.  
  
[ Am I real?] Pyron thought strangely, then a surge of hatred and almost insane denial went through him. [ What am I thinking? This is me! I am here! Here!]  
  
Yet that feeling of unreality, of not-thereness, flooded over him.  
  
" What..." Pyron began, but Dimitri silenced him with a look. Pyron's courage faltered. What was this thing before him? What was this mighty thing, wielding a spear he couldn't even see anymore? What was it?....  
  
" For crimes against the people," Dimitri began, an age-old saying that judges used before sentencing a murderer to death, both in his lands and in lands beyond, " for crimes against the soul, and for crimes against the Lord God.... I sentence you to death."  
  
Pyron's eyes widened at this strange opening line, then twisted in a snarl of rage. " What! You, judge me? Come at me, boy! I shall- aah!"  
  
Pyron's arrogance was cut short as Dimitri stabbed forth with the Ebonrule, and struck him in the chest. Pyron jerked and shook like a fish on the end of a hunter's spear.  
  
" What- aaah!" Pyron screamed again, as his body jerked and flailed.  
  
" Killing you isn't enough," Dimitri said. His eyes flared. " You are nothing, mean nothing. It's what's inside you- the curse inside you- that I want."  
  
As Dimitri's friends came into the room, he turned to them and shouted.  
  
" Everyone! Let's heal this world! Let's restore humanity to it's rightful place as one of the Four Races! Let us give vampires the gift of sunrise and dawn- let us give this world a second chance! Let us touch the sky- and hear, once more, the music of the spheres...."  
  
Dimitri pulled with all his might. Pyron's physical body changed into a whirling, burning pool of flame- and the Deeping Dream opened.  
  
They fell....  
  
The Deeping Dream of Hell. No place. No time.  
  
The world burned. It gnashed and raved. A field of open, broken rock lay bleeding, as flames danced all around, as the light was stolen from vampires, as the power was stolen from humans, over and over again, never ending, never stopping, madness for all time.  
  
Dimitri stood up. Behind him, Felicia, Jon, and Morrigan stood as well. And above them, in his true form, Pyron screamed.  
  
" For a new dawn," Dimitri whispered, closing his eyes for a few seconds, then opening them to gaze upon Pyron's true shape.  
  
And even in his stout heart, fear found a home.  
  
-R and R, people! And in one week: the grand finale of Deeping Dream! 


	26. Awake From Dream

Hey everyone. Amazing... it's the last chapter. Six chapters over what I originally thought this story would go to... But this has been an enjoyable little jaunt. I've only finished one other story (and seeing as how a prequel started immediately after finishing that one, it doesn't count) and so I'm kind of at a loss of what to do. I guess I should start like this....  
  
Thank you to every single reviewer. ?, Long Shot, Johnathan Tailban, Tiger5913, Galandria the Vampire Queen, Redskin, and all my other friends. Thank you guys so much. Your reviews and comments have meant a great deal to me. We have never met face to face, but we are friends nevertheless. Good to have you around!  
  
The only review question I got to see before writing this (I've been away at a political camp called Boy's State for a week) was comments on Dimitri's apparent religiousness. Remember that this is AU, and I'm screwing with the storyline- Humans spread out all over the universe in my backstory. They took their religion with them, and henceforth Dimitri is Christian (of indeterminate denomination :). Likewise, most of the other races are Christian- note the Christian myths of the Felinos and Incubi/Succubi- due to the fact that they are descendants of humans. My own little way of inserting my religion into things.  
  
I've said enough. So, to close the curtains on my very first book, I'll make this announcement. My friends, it is time to call an end to this delightful tale. It saddens the heart to think of it, I know. But fear not- stories never end. They merely quit on pen and paper, while living on in the heart and soul. So, I shall close the curtains on this tale- but! First, I must announce the opening of it's last chapter! Henceforth, Ladies and Gentlemen, Dukes and Duchesses, Kings and Queens and Guests of All Ages! It's....  
  
"SHHHOOOOOWWWTIIIIMMMME!"  
  
FINAL CHAPTER  
  
CHAPTER 26  
  
Wake From Dream  
  
The Deeping Dream of Hell. No place, no time.  
  
Pyron's true form was oddly fireless, for a creature whose name itself suggested flame and death. It was brown, a mound of enormous flesh, and seemed almost a dead thing, bloated with foul fluids and the corruption of death. His body was long and serpentine, stretching to the floor in a legless tail that dragged across the broken, rocky plains of this nightmare land. Two enormous arms, both thick as ancient oaks, plunged down from the staggering height of his shoulders and supported his titanic upper body. On the back of this creature, fleshy tentacles rode, and each tentacle ended in a body. One was B.B. Hood, a screaming, fell wreck of a woman, hissing and spewing blood.... one was Donovan, maniac's gleam burning in his eyes as he lifted his sword.... others shook and laughed and screamed and raved on Pyron's back, all souls lost to darkness, all weak things taken in by lies. As these things swayed on Pyron's back, the monstrosity moved it's ponderous bulk and turned to face them. Pyron's face, incredibly small on the great bulk of his new form and strangely unchanged, glared at them. Part of the face was cut apart, as if recently wounded by a spear blow.  
  
" This is it," the creature said, in a thousand voices that echoed and redoubled each other. " One last fight. Then I end you... vampire.... and with you, all that remains in this world to fight me."  
  
" Wrong," Dimitri said, grinning. " Kill me and you just end me. You still have to deal with my friends. You still have to deal with Jedah. And you will still have to deal with forces entirely beyond your comprehension. You know almost nothing... you can understand nothing."  
  
" Brave words for a dying man," Pyron said. " Here, in my world, you cannot stop me."  
  
" Can't I?" Dimitri said, a mad grin still pasted to his face. " What does this world mean? What does all this show and frippery mean? What does any of it mean, when you place it against the fact that I am a man of Good? It means nothing. Nothing at all."  
  
Pyron shrieked with a thousand vocal cords. " You shall die!"  
  
Dimitri sniggered again. " We'll see about that, Pyron."  
  
With that, Dimitri threw a fireball against the figure. It didn't do much more than annoy the creature, but that little annoyance was enough to let Dimitri gain a small advantage in time. He ran forth, Ebonrule ready, looking for a spot to strike.   
  
Felicia launched herself as far as she could, pouncing as only her kind could pounce, flying across the broken rocks to touch briefly on ground and leap again. She soon outpaced Dimitri and leapt at one of Pyron's arms. The mass was thicker than her entire body was. She leapt and stuck her claws in it, tearing and scratching, looking for tendons or muscles to cut. Black blood leaked out and burned her hands. She cried out but kept slashing.  
  
Jon dropped to all fours and ran forth as well, and then one of the cadavers on Pyron's back let out a scream. It opened it's mouth and spewed forth a wave of sonic force. It struck the werewolf's sensitive ears and shoved him into the ground, pressing him with such force that he cracked the rocks beneath his body. Jon howled in pain.  
  
Morrigan threw a fireball of her own, trying to help Jon, but it entered the path of the shriek of the thin corpse on Pyron's back and was extinguished in seconds. Taking to the air, Morrigan shot again and connected solidly with the corpse. It stopped it's scream as fire consumed it's forehead. Soon, the fire was absorbed by Pyron, but the damage was done- the thin corpse would bother them no more. It sagged and fell sideways onto Pyron's back. The other corpse-tentacles pulled away from it and kept fighting.  
  
Donovan's body flung itself into the air, stretching to the limit of the tentacle to which it was attached, and struck with it's sword. Morrigan felt the wind of it as it passed her, and she grabbed for the corpse. Her hands found it's neck, and she soon wrapped herself around it in a strange parody of lovemaking, trying to hold it's arms so that it could not strike her with it's sword. As she held the creature and jerked her head left and right to dodge it's biting jaws, her tentacles shot out and pierced the corpse's sides and face. Donovan jerked twice, and then the corpse fell from the air, falling towards the ground at a terrific rate. Morrigan leaped off the corpse and spread her wings to control her descent, but it was too late; her wings weren't enough to prevent a hard impact with the ground. Dazed, she moaned and tried to clear her head.  
  
Dimitri ran to one of the great forelimbs of the monster and raised his spear. Ebonrule blazed, and he pierced the limb with it's length. The beast shuddered, and Dimitri jerked and twisted the spear in the arm, shattering vital nerves and muscles within. Pyron's body jerked, and B.B. Hood's form flew from his back, spewing foul blood-poison from within itself. Two blasts splashed against Dimitri's cloak, burning and eating away at the leather so it could touch his skin. Dimitri yelled and let go of the Ebonrule, flinging his cloak away. The acid spread and consumed his cloak, reducing it to a puddle of boiling acid. As Dimitri patted himself to make sure no acid had reached his skin, Pyron moved on great, mountainous arm. Dimitri dodged and rolled, trying to avoid being crushed by that enormous hand. He ended up near the still-fighting Felicia, Ebonrule stuck in Pyron some distance away.  
  
Jon got up dazedly and glanced over at the battle still raging. Felicia now looked like she'd been badly sunburned, the black blood of Pyron wounding her even as she damaged it. A snarl of rage and determination covered her face.  
  
Jon got up and ran forward, on all fours again, and as he reached the leg he jumped up as high as he could. He stuck in the upper portion of Pyron's arm, claws buried deep in the foul flesh. Howling as the blood burned him, Jon began climbing up the creature in slow, painful leaps and jerks, repeating his assault on the Fragment that B.B. Hood had become. His teeth were gritted, and howls of pain locked themselves in his throat.  
  
B.B. Hood's body turned and rushed at him, meaning to knock the offending wolf off, but before she could a fireball caught her face. She screamed and spat poison, dousing the flames. Morrigan stood up on the battlefield, head still ringing from her impact with the ground. Morrigan stood there, and called to herself all the rage and pain she still remembered, from Garik's betrayal, from her inner pain, from her hurt. It was not madness, but close enough to give her strength. She began summoning another fireball, this one a whirling maelstrom of her own bright flame.  
  
Pyron turned to face her and grinned. She was going to use fire on him, of all things. Fire could harm the lost souls on his back, of course- they were part of him and yet separate, so were without his demonic protection from such things- but against him? Against his real body? What good could that do?  
  
Morrigan let loose with a gout of fire that would have done a dragon proud. It spun as it traveled, making a vortex of bright fire that lit up the battlefield. Pyron screamed, for he had forgotten that here, it was the intent and not the attack itself that mattered. He fought back with his own power, breathing out dark flames to counter Morrigan's orange fire. The two fought and warred in the air of the battlefield. Morrigan held her hands out, her face taut, her body shaking with the effort of summoning this great flame. It burned out of her in a continuous spinning stream.  
  
With Pyron distracted for the moment, Dimitri got up as fast as he could and ran to Ebonrule. Jerking it out of Pyron's arm (causing Pyron's flame to falter for a moment and Morrigan to regain some ground lost), Dimitri turned and threw the spear into the chest of Pyron's body. It was intercepted in it's flight by B.B. Hood's corpse, the dead face screaming all the while, and her body exploded in blue flame when Ebonrule touched her. The spear lost it's momentum and fell point down towards the ground.  
  
Felicia seemed to wake up from a strange, semi-drugged state of berseker fury (very unlike anything she'd ever done before) and saw Jon above her. Abandoning her futile attack on Pyron's arm, she crawled up the arm as well, following her love. He was almost to the top, and Felicia was right behind him when an enormous thing struck him. He fell off the arm with barely a cry. Felicia screamed and grabbed at him, her claws catching his shoulder. Jon howled as Felicia's own hand pierced his skin, but he was still thankful; a fall from this height would have killed him. Felicia swung him over to the arm and he latched on again. Above them, a fat and bulging corpse lolled it's tongue at them. It was a Fragment of Gluttony, and it grinned at them with a million mouths. It had no eyes. Felicia gritted her teeth in a snarl and leapt at it. It dodged incredibly fast for such a large object, going in a circle pattern, and when it finished it's circle it's back collided with Felicia. The blow tossed her high into the air.  
  
" Felicia!" Jon screamed. Felicia said nothing as she plummeted downwards. Jon leapt off the arm and dove, forgetting how high up they were. As he grabbed her in mid-air, it occured to him that he had now secured not only Felicia's death but his own; neither of them were going to survive a fall from this height onto the rocky ground of this place.  
  
[ And maybe that's not so bad, after all,] he thought, in the few seconds before impact. [ To die like this.... isn't it best to die a hero?]  
  
Then they struck the ground, and knew no more. Yet, miraculously, they both survived; for Jon's dive had not been in vain. He'd pushed both of them far enough to the side that they landed on Pyron's fleshy tail and not the ground. The impact knocked them out, and they were still in a bad place, but for the moment, they were still alive. Pyron shifted and they both rolled off him, onto the ground nearby. By the wonder of luck (or something more) Pyron took no notice of them.  
  
As they were falling through the air, Morrigan felt her strength waning, and the stream of flame coming from her hands weakened accordingly. Pyron drew on the near-endless strength of the lost souls he'd corrupted and breathed forth with renewed strength.  
  
[ Your flame cannot match my- Ugh!] Pyron thought, his mind triumphant up until the point Dimitri threw Ebonrule through his chest. He'd grabbed the spear and aimed directly for where Pyron's heart would have been at. Seeing as how Pyron did not have a heart (in both the figurative and literal sense), the blow was merely extremely painful.  
  
Pyron stomped backwards (causing Dimitri to scatter and dodge those enormous hands) reeling from the blow to his chest. Morrigan increased her flame as much as she could, and almost defeated Pyron's darkness before he recovered and fought back. Her strength almost gone, Morrigan's fire was soon consumed by the dark, rolling blaze. Only a small fire, mere feet from her body, remained to combat Pyron. Morrigan backed away slowly, seeking some escape from the fiery waves rolling towards her.  
  
It was Dimitri who granted her reprieve, for Ebonrule had returned to him, and his throw was perfect. The fat Fragment attempted to intercept the spear, but it was too slow. The spear tip struck Pyron's face and plunged forth.  
  
Right into the crack where Dimitri had already wounded him.  
  
Pyron stopped breathing fire immediately, as Ebonrule's black tip struck his inner darkness and true essence. Morrigan, who was so exhausted she was almost unconscious, dropped to her knees and breathed a sigh of relief. Dark flames burned and died all around her.  
  
" No!" Pyron shouted, jerking and shaking. The spear tip trembled, shivered, fell. " No! I deny it! I deny all of it! I DENY EVERYTHING!" Pyron's form suddenly went black, blacker than the darkest night. " I will not succumb to some pathetic piece of obsidian a dog made! I am more than that! I am Pyron!"  
  
" You're right, in your own way," Dimitri said, as the darkness that had now become Pyron spread out over the burning battlefield and wiped away the light. " You won't succumb to an obsidian spear. The spear's just a representative. What you will succumb to is the force behind the spear. The force of redemption, of tears in the rain..."  
  
And from somewhere far away, falling like the first gentle rain of the first pure world, water droplets struck the surface of this newly black land. They fell slowly at first, and then struck faster- but they never struck hard, or painfully, or blindingly. They merely came on faster, gentle as teardrops and just as sweet. Dimitri lifted his face to them and raised his hand, a light smile barely touching the corners of his mouth. Morrigan looked up as well and closed her eyes, feeling the gentle rain run down her face, cooling and soothing. As they struck Jon and Felicia, the two lovers awoke, groggy and in pain at first, but the rain soon washed that away and they were whole.  
  
Pyron screamed, for the rain that touched him was not gentle, but driving and brutal. Harsh and killing. Pyron felt the life go out from him.  
  
[ Am I real?] he thought, one last time, before all that he was and ever would be was extinguished and made unreal for all time.  
  
[ We did it,] Dimitri thought, before he felt light rushing towards him.  
  
And all around him, the Dream was broken, and the sleepers awoke to a new dawn...  
  
Dawn rose over the world, hours early. Weary, bestraggled vampires gazed up at the sun, at first in terror, then in wonder as they saw that it did not burn their skin. Werewolves, hunting in the woods, heard the most beautiful birds sing, heard all birds sing in a cacophony that was both chaotic and wild and structured and true, a symphony that had never been heard before in that world and would never be heard again. The survivors of the devastasted lands of Aensland looked up at the sun, and images of their departed and lost loved ones appeared to them in those first bright rays. The patrols of Jedah's camp, already receiving refugees, heard the music of perfect silver bells that rang on and on over the rocky shores, and the soldiers and guards looked about in wonder as the whole world seemed to spin and sing, and laughter broke out over the camp as they saw themselves in a new light, in a true light, and saw that they were, in their own way, good. All over the world, sleepers, regardless of how tired they were when they went to sleep or how long they'd been sleeping, awoke entirely refreshed, and feeling as if they had just escaped a terrible nightmare. The soldiers of Pyron's encampment felt fear and terror such as they'd never known, and the ringing of the bells tore into their minds as they ran and ran. In the Western Wastes that the humans had been forced to live in by the Darkstalkers, flowers bloomed, and a great rainstorm appeared out of nowhere, to blanket the land in a soothing rain. And as the rain touched their skin, the humans in those lands found to their wonder that something had awoke in them. Their heartbeats were louder, their stance taller, their stride greater. The Elder Race from which all races had come woke once more on the world of their sacrifice.  
  
And even through the rain, the red rays of dawn filtered through.  
  
One hundred years later. The First Grand Banquet of Reunited Worlds, at the Royal Castle of the Jurai Empire, on Capital World of Jurai Empire. Dawn.  
  
Dimitri rose up and stretched himself. That had been a good dream, if a long one- starting from the time he'd woken up that first morning when he'd met Morrigan, ending when he'd destroyed Pyron- and he was well rested. Beside him, stirring lightly in her sleep, Morrigan dozed. Dimitri got up and walked over to the window of their room, looking up into the not-quite-dawn not-quite-night sky of Jurai. Jurai had a different solar cycle than Makai, and so Dimitri usually awoke before dawn on this world. He liked that just fine. Watching the dawn rise was still one of the greatest pleasures of his life, even a full century after he'd watched his first dawn rise, from his position in the middle of Pyron's encampment, as the tents and black box that Pyron had used to convey his army and himself faded away to nothing. The tent poles disappeared and the cloth had blown away, fading and crumpling and folding itself into nothingness in the wind. The box had shuddered and then fell apart, and as Dimitri and his three friends looked into the morning sky, the crumbled ruins had dissolved into dirt and sand. They had all stood, their legs weak and shaking, and Dimitri had cried tears of happiness. The sun was more beautiful than anything he'd ever imagined, better than he had hoped it to be, and without the curse the sunbeams were gentle and loving on his skin. Morrigan had went to him and held him, and they'd all cried there, as they watched the sun rise.  
  
Morrigan yawn-moaned in her sleep, and Dimitri knew from long experience she would wake soon. Good. They had a lot to do today. It was the Grand Banquet, a meeting of all the recently reunited worlds, and it was going to be a hell of a thing to go through. So many worlds, so many people, all meeting for the first time...  
  
Soon after defeating Pyron, Dimitri and his friends had made their way to Jedah's camp. The freed slaves had already told Jedah of their saviours, and so Jedah and his men were waiting for them when they came. As Morrigan and Dimitri approached, he had walked forward and knelt on one knee. As he rose, he declared in a voice that trumpeted over the battlements of his army and was heard for almost a mile around, " Morrigan, Queen of Aensland and all this world. Welcome back."  
  
The rebellion had ended before it had begun. Jedah pledged his immediate support and to this very day was one of the most loyal Dukes of Aensland that Dimitri possessed. Odd, that a man who once planned to kill Berial would pledge complete fealty to his daughter.  
  
Or maybe not so odd. After killing Pyron, Dimitri had noticed that the luck of all four friends had went through the roof. They were blessed people, seemingly, and not one of them had suffered after that last, final, titanic battle. Jon and Felicia had gotten married, and now had three kids (and, if Dimitri knew his friends, a fourth would not be too soon in coming). Jon was Head of Royal Guard, and Felicia had become Royal Storyteller. In those few moments when Morrigan wasn't with her and Dimitri's own two kids, Felicia would regale them with tales of their parent's bravery (much to Dimitri's embarassment).  
  
Dimitri and Morrigan had gotten married as well, making Dimitri Royal Consort (a title that had made him cringe when he first heard it; he had told Morrigan he might as well have been named "Royal Gigolo", and she, laughing, had gotten it changed to King) and securing Morrigan's power over all Makai. She'd immediately moved her people to Moongrace, and oddly, the castle had not rejected them. When the small army Morrigan had called together had breached the castle, all the knights had already been destroyed, replaced with pretty shield and weapon decorations where they once stood. Dimitri had been entirely dumbfounded until he'd spotted a small red hair, floating in the breeze, attached to a chair. Smiling, Dimitri had held up this memento of his enigmatic friend Traveler and blew it up into the breeze. The hair, as if realizing it's job was done, floated off out an open window.  
  
Moongrace had solved most of their problems immediately; game was plentiful in the forest near it, and Moongrace itself was just so beautiful that it was hard to live near it and not be on your best behavior, for some reason feeling that one should not disgrace such a thing with arguments or bad tempers. Morrigan had recalled the surviving heads of state, instituted new ones, and immediately got word out of her two biggest proposals: that Humans were now equals with Darkstalkers, and that the hunting and fighting between the groups was to stop. Vampires were almost manic in their support for her and Dimitri (for obvious reasons; who else had given them the power to stand in sunlight and be unharmed?) and the other races were thankful enough to give in to their proposals. There had been some nasty times, particularly early in their reign, when several wars had broken out between Humans and Darkstalkers; but with the aid of Ebonrule, their newfound luck, and the legions of faithful soldiers that replaced the devastated units of the Fell Time (as the Darkstalkers had taken to calling it), the wars were stopped and peace reigned. Dimitri and Morrigan had settled into daily life, and twenty five years into their marriage (a short time indeed for Darkstalkers) young Garik was born. Dimitri had almost freaked when he heard what Morrigan had decided to name him; but she'd calmed him down as she held their son, saying, " I named him Garik because Garik- besides you, anyway- taught me more about myself than anyone. This is my way of breaking with the past." And she'd held Garik and cried, and Dimitri had held her and cried, and the doctors all around simply stood there and looked confused. No one ever really knew about the origins of Garik's name, and that was a good thing as far as both parents were concerned.   
  
Garik was now seventy-five, and growing up to look almost exactly like his father (although Dimitri had never sported small black bat wings on his head). He was an accomplished swordsman, though Dimitri had tried his best to teach him the spear. Garik was well-liked about court, and was having a far easier time growing up than Dimitri had.  
  
The Ebonrule which Dimitri still carried (he'd thought it lost at first, since it had not left the Deeping Dream with him, but when he'd entered Moongrace it had been waiting there, stuck point down in the carpet before the stairs leading to the throne; Dimitri had originally thought Traveler had done that too, but something inside him had said that Ebonrule had come of it's own free will) would eventually go to Lei-Lei, his younger daughter. She, too, seemed to be a carbon copy, this time of Morrigan, though she had the long fangs of a vampire. Unlike Garik, she also had the lower wings of an Incubi (though no head wings; genetics always confused the hell out of Dimitri). She had taken up weapon practice, and much to Dimitri's pleasure, had liked the spear immediately upon picking it up. When Dimitri was dead or too old to wield it anymore, he would give the weapon to her. Ebonrule would lose power in the hands of an innocent, but it would still be a formidable weapon nonetheless.  
  
The strangest thing had happened a year ago. Moongrace had pulsed, suddenly, as if it were a great heartbeat. Dimitri and Morrigan had stopped in their small walk across the parapets and listened. It pulsed again.  
  
Dimitri had ran down the stairs as fast as he could, Morrigan behind him, and met with a great crowd in a large room of Moongrace that had never been used. In the middle, a great pulsing ball of light floated, and a voice was coming out of it. It was perky, grating, and yet somehow smile-inspiring, a funny little voice that was actually quite cheery and made a strange contrast with the solemnly glowing ball of light.  
  
" Can anyone here me? Holy shit, I think we did it! We turned the transporters on! My God, commander, do you know what this means?"  
  
A second voice, more authoritive and commanding, had broken in. " Yes, Washu, I know. And I'm excited too. It won't mean anything if we can't figure out whether there's anyone on the other side or not..."  
  
Morrigan had stepped forth, leader of her people again, and said, " There is."  
  
There was a scream of joy from the ball of light. " Holy shit! There's people over there! Thank God! What world is this? Terra? Gaia? Or maybe even... Earth? The old land?"  
  
" I know not of what you speak," Morrigan said, managing to sound quite royal considering the circumstances. " This is the world of Makai, and I am it's ruler."  
  
Another scream, along with some muffled shouts in the background behind (in? Where were the sounds coming from?) the sphere. " Holy shit! Makai? The vampire homeworld! Commander! This is great! We've got contact with Makai!"  
  
" Washu, I'd normally yell at you for screaming, but I'm so damn happy at the moment I'll let it pass. Can I step through?"  
  
" Sure! Let me screw with these controls... got it! Go on through! Hey, you people on Makai! We're sending someone in to talk face to face! Don't freak out now!"  
  
Morrigan had smiled and said, " It's a little late for that."  
  
Another scream of happy laughter. " I guess so! Here she comes now! Hold on to your ass, Kiyone!" And then the sphere had grown brighter for a second before slacking off and becoming tall and angular, like a door.  
  
And in had stepped a blue-haired, armored soldier. She'd taken off her helm, and spoke a greeting which had been repeated endlessly across Makai afterwards:  
  
" Greetings. I am Commander Kiyone, of the Jurai Empire. I am here to welcome your world back into the universe."  
  
After that, things had fallen into place. Jurai was apparently an enormous, multi-world empire that had recently discovered technology from the Sundering War. And that technology had been the ability to cross stars in an instant. Within seconds, the universe was reopened. Jurai scientists (the afore-mentioned Washu first among them) had reopened world transporters. Within a month, over five worlds had been rediscovered, and attempts to reintegrate them into the universe were on. A plan for a great banquet of world leaders was launched, and that had led to this.  
  
Dimitri and Morrigan were the representatives of Makai, along with friends and family. Both of their children were here, asleep in a nearby room. Jon and Felicia were in another adjoining room as well, their kids past them. As Dimitri looked outside, dawn began to rise over the Jurai Empire. He watched it rise, marveling as always in the million colors that the light seemed to break into, the way the light changed things and made them greater and grander somehow. Dimitri sighed and looked at the world outside his window, discovering that others were up as well. A long-haired blonde man was standing in one window to his left and above him, his face drawn and sad, almost hunted. He wore bright armor, and a warhammer was strapped to his back. Dangling by a chain from his waist was a book, and Dimitri could just make out a small cross etched on it's cover.   
  
To Dimitri's right and below him, a young woman looked out on the dawn, an enormous purple ribbon tied to her back, a match for her light (very light) purple hair. Her entire outfit was made of various shades of purple, and had Dimitri not been married already, he would have attempted to contact her; she was beautiful in the extreme. Her eyes, however, belied that beauty and made it worthless; they were sad, hating, and most of all cold.  
  
The last watcher Dimitri saw in his casual scan was located in the highest towers of the castle, directly visible from his room. Another young woman with long, dark purple hair was looking out onto the world, her clothes and manner dictating that she was a princess of some kind, and though her eyes were invisible from this distance, Dimitri thought he could feel a sense of nothingness come from her, of someone who hadn't given up on life because they had never really lived in the first place. It was odd, to see all these people, and for some reason to know their problems without ever having met them. Dimitri wondered at this, and then heard a call.  
  
It was a voice without a voice, a sound that was utterly silent. Dimitri looked up. Above him, red hair ruffling in a newfound breeze, cape blue as ever, Traveler was smiling down at him from a high balcony. Dimtri smiled back and tapped his fingers to his forehead in an age-old sign of acknowledgement among his people.  
  
Traveler tapped his forehead back and turned his gaze to the dawn. Dimitri did so as well. When he looked back, Traveler was gone. Dimitri smiled and laughed, waking Morrigan with his chuckles.  
  
" A hero's work is not only never done," Dimitri said, as he watched the other three souls leave, three souls who he just might be able to help if he believed and was true, " it is also the only work worth doing."  
  
And he turned to wake his friends, as the rays of dawn brought the world to life around them.  
  
- And there you go. The last chapter, my friends. May God and Honor stay with you all your days, and the sun shine on you always. May we meet again on the road of life!  
  
Your Friend and Fellow Author,  
  
-Silverlocke980 


End file.
